Let’s All Loot & What It Means for the LAPD

Predictably, looting has broken out in New Orleans and other locations devastated by hurricane Katrina. The image of people cleaning out stores is familiar to Los Angeles as recently as the riots after the CA state acquittal of the LAPD officers in the Rodney King incident trial.

Why is it that some people respond to disasters, both natural and man-made, in humanitarian, selfless sacrifice and others don’t? For some, the absence of immediate societal inhibitory forces allows the veneer of civilization to rapidly erode away leaving the self-centered parasite to prey on society. I guess that’s obvious enough; otherwise, there would be no need for law enforcement. But, it is not the presence of law enforcement that keeps society whole. It is the voluntary compliance with the will of the many, which is what laws are supposed to represent, that makes for an orderly society. Law enforcement is only there to keep the scofflaws from harming society. When law enforcement is not present, we get what we got in Los Angeles and now New Orleans.

What quality is it that facilitates the voluntary compliance with the will of the many? That’s not too hard of a question. It is values, and values express themselves in socially acceptable behavior. But, what happens when members of law enforcement don’t have those important values? Some members of the New Orleans Police Department answered that question by joining in with the looting. One looter complained to the media that the police were getting all of the “good stuff.”

Clearly the New Orleans Police Department let the citizens down by employing officers that do not have the necessary values to protect those they are sworn to protect. How could the department do such a thing? Do you suppose that it might have something to do with an insufficient level of requirements to become an officer?

Police departments are having a difficult time hiring officers. It seems that many applicants can’t meet the traditional stringent requirements. So, instead of increasing the incentive to attract more qualified applicants by improving working conditions, pay and benefits, let’s just lower the requirements. That is what LAPD is suggesting,

Struggling to lure more officers, the Los Angeles Police Department is joining a growing number of law enforcement agencies across the nation in considering less stringent recruitment rules.

Police Chief William J. Bratton said he was drawing up the proposed changes, which would end the LAPD's zero-tolerance rule toward past marijuana use and make it easier for the department to hire people with bad credit histories.

Bratton said some of the LAPD's standards regarding drug use and a candidate's financial history may be "artificially high."

Come on Chief Bratton. You know that drug use and bad credit histories make officers much more susceptible to corruption. And, what makes a standard “artificially high?” Either it is high or it is not high.

One LAPD spokesman explained that currently,

“Only one in 12 candidates makes it through the process…”

Is that “process” just the initial hiring or does it include becoming a successful cop? And, you call that high? When I got in the business in the 70’s, only 1 in 100 every made it from the application process to the street and off probation. It seems like maybe the standards have already slipped. The truth of the matter is that long ago police departments began overlooking the minor use of marijuana because they were having such a difficult time hiring anyone who had served in Vietnam.

Rumor in the industry is that LAPD changed its policies long ago to hire lesser quality applicants knowing that many would fail in the academy and on the street instead of weeding them out at the get-go. That way LAPD could say that they were hiring the prescribed number of various segments of the population that previously had not qualified for hiring.

Some people might see the lowering of hiring requirements as an improvement. I call them a symptom of a devolving society. You can decide for yourself what kind of police officer you want in your community. You better yell your answer loudly in Los Angeles if you don’t agree with the Chief. Most police officers in New Orleans are probably very good officers, and I am embarrassed for them. But if you live there, I’m sorry.

Katrina Donations

Go to Instapundit for a list of charities involved in the hurricane Katrina effort.

Of special interest in the Katrina effort is Soldiers’ Angels. It has been stated that Louisiana has about 4,000 troops in Iraq. Many of them will have lost their homes and/or businesses and their families are now homeless. Please consider helping our troops by helping their families.

Simi Valley Sophist Out of the Closet

The Simi Valley Sophist is out of the closet. No, it is not what you are thinking. I am talking about transparency in the blogosphere. Hugh Hewitt discussed the importance of transparency in his interview with Tim Rutten of the LA Times. Read the transcript at Radio Blogger.

I believe Hewitt correctly deduced that the LA Times is losing circulation because of the readers’ loss of confidence. Rutten tried to claim that it was managerial issues tied to shifting demographics. I don’t think so. Opinion must be confined to the editorial page and not allowed to creep into the “news.” Patterico often skewers the paper for various transgressions, and I did so here & here.

Here’s an observation; If you’re unaccustomed to public speaking, don’t get into a debate on the air with a talk radio host. The latter will probably beat your pants off, as was the case in the Rutten/Hewitt exchange. What was supposed to be a newspaper piece interview by Rutten about declining talk radio ratings ended up a rout as Hewitt turned the tables and interviewed Rutten on declining La Times circulation. To his credit, Hewitt did so in his usual gentlemanly manner. Rutten was clearly out-of-his-league in the radio medium. The posting of the transcript on Radio Blogger compounded Rutten’s poorly delivered message Right there in front of God and everyone was every hesitation, stumble and incomplete thought. Those are things that we writers avoid by rewrite, rewrite, rewrite.

Rutten attempted to derail Hewitt’s allegations that the LA Times was in a “death spiral” by pointing out that the LA Times is still operating at a profit. Hewitt’s point is that the paper is losing market share to the new media, and thus circulation is declining and profitability threatened.

Hewitt’s thesis about the declining LA Times circulation revolves around the concept of “transparency.” Hewitt posits that the public now requires reporters and commentators to disclose their personal political positions in order to forewarn the public of potential bias. Rutten disagrees and maintains that news organizations have “conventions” that can be followed to ensure fairness, accuracy and context without revealing personal positions. I concur with Hewitt.

Rutten’s subsequent article revealed that he does not have a clear concept when he asserted that talk radio is a “…wholly owned subsidiary of the Republican Party...” Clearly, Rutten has not engaged his critical listening skills with regard to talk radio.

Transparency is important for credibility. Therefore, I am coming out of the closet and revealing that I am a Republican and that I have been in law enforcement for 26 years. The last 16 years as a criminal intelligence detective. You have no idea how hard that is after keeping much of my career under wraps for many years. But, retirement is approaching and credibility is important. I want my work to be viewed as credible, and so I must offer my bona fides and reveal my potential bias.

Update: This blog is submitted to the Hugh Hewitt blog of the week contest. You can review all of the contestant blogs here. Voting will begin at Radio Blogger on Friday at noon PDT

Correction: Voting begins sometime after the blog submission deadline Thurs midnight PDT.

Update 9/2: The Blog of the Week contest did not happen this week despite a number of submissions. Never heard anything from Radio Blogger or Hugh Hewitt, it just did not happen. HH cancelled the contest for the next week. Hugh requests Vox Bloguli on the comments of Ill. Rep. Jackson on the Bush response to Katrina.

Best Blog of the Week- Michael Yon, A True Hero

I am happy to announce that my blog “Michael Yon, A True Hero” prevailed in the voting and is declared the best blog of the week by Hugh Hewitt. Read it on Radio Blogger.

You Belong In A Zoo

You can bet that the recent exhibition of humans at the London Zoo is going to stir up the talk show air waves and stoke the internet. In case you didn’t hear, London Zoo put 8 humans in a cage. Read it here and here. A zoo spokesman stated,

"Seeing people in a different environment, among other animals ... teaches members of the public that the human is just another primate,"…

Caged and barely clothed, eight men and women monkeyed around for the crowds yesterday in an exhibit labeled "Humans" at the London Zoo.

The exhibit, which opened yesterday, puts the three male and five female Homo sapiens side by side with their primate relatives, though separated by an electric fence. While their neighbors might enjoy bananas and a good scratch, these eight, chosen from 30 applicants who entered an online contest, have diverse interests, from a chemist hoping to raise awareness about apes to a self-described actor/model and fitness enthusiast.

Apparently zoos are not beyond entering into the liberal political correctness game which infests much of the arts. What is somewhat surprising to me is that the humans were not nude. But, then nude would raise all the sexual issues, and that is a different battle than the creation/intelligent design/Darwinian evolution conversation that is current.

Let’s take the argument one step further. Why not include various human ethnic and cultural groups in our zoo exhibits.? It would be a living educational experience for visitors to see exactly how various people dress, work, live, reproduce and carry out their own special cultural requirements. Think how much money could be saved on not having to travel to learn all of this. And, there would be no need to subject you to the potential of being caught up in a terrorist act in a foreign country.

At first I thought the human zoo exhibit was goofy. Upon reflection, I think that the London Zoo has hit on something. What do you think?

Un-Christian “Christians” Rebuked

Coming to a town near you!

Make no mistake about it, there are hate-filled “Christians” as bigoted and narrow minded as any Islamo-fascist. Witness what happened in Symrna, Tenn.

Members of a church say God is punishing American soldiers for defending a country that harbors gays, and they brought their anti-gay message to the funerals Saturday of two Tennessee soldiers killed in Iraq.

The Rev. Fred Phelps, founder of Westboro Baptist in Kansas, contends that American soldiers are being killed in Iraq as vengeance from God for protecting a country that harbors gays. The church, which is not affiliated with a larger denomination, is made up mostly of Phelps' children, grandchildren and in-laws.

The church mentioned is dramatically anti-homosexual and blames various American woes -- including September 11th and the war in Iraq -- as punishments from God for this country's tolerance of homosexuals.

The church has apparently already protested at the Massachusetts, Iowa and Idaho funerals of Americans killed in combat.

Fortunately, Tennessee does not agree with the Westboro Baptist message.

Hundreds of Smyrna and Ashland City residents and families of other soldiers turned out at both sites to counter the message the Westboro Baptist members brought.

Read it here and here.

Blue Star Mothers, An Antidote to the Leftist Virus

There are Blue Star Mothers all over the country.

On January 22, 1942, The Flint News Advertiser in Flint, michigan printed a coupon in their newspaper asking the mothers of servicemen to fill it out, giving their name, address, and telephone number. It also asked for the number of boys and their names in various branches of the Armed Services.

Over three hundred mothers met for the first time in the Durant Hotel in Flint, Michigan on February 1st, 1942. Captain George H. Maines, who had conceived the idea for the group, acted as chairman. He reported that over one thousand applications had been received by the News Advertiser. It was decided to form a permanent organization, to be known as the Blue Star Mothers.

Find a Blue Star Mother chapter in your area and help vaccinate the country from the virus of the apologetic, defeatist left in this country.

Afghanistan is Heating Up & Yon May Move There

Read this Knight Rider report:

Nearly four years after a U.S.-led military intervention toppled them from power, the Taliban has re-emerged as a potent threat to stability in Afghanistan.

The Taliban is now a disparate assemblage of radical groups estimated to number several thousand, far fewer than when it was in power before November 2001.

Their tactics include attacks with homemade explosives, and beheadings, assassinations and kidnappings targeting public officials and others who cooperate in international democracy-building efforts and reconstruction.

…today's Taliban is fighting a guerrilla war with new weapons, including portable anti-aircraft missiles, and equipment bought with cash sent through Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida network…

"I think they (al-Qaida) are opening a second front,"…

Previously in opposition to the Taliban, watch for Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and his Hizb-e-Islami party to be major players in the future.

Michael Yon has previously mentioned that he may soon leave Iraq and move to Afghanistan. He said so again in an interview with Hugh Hewitt yesterday.

Update: Go to Radio Blogger for a transcript of the interview.

“There are No Moderate Islamists…” & "The West deserves this"

There are no moderate Islamists that I have seen. There are ordinary Muslims who are living decent lives, and there are terrorists or would-be terrorists.

So says Mamoun Fandy a senior fellow at Rice University Baker Institute specializing in Middle East and Islamic politics.

His research focus is the politics of the Arab World, terrorism and radical Islamic politics, and regional security issues in the Middle East.

I suspect that the religiously tolerant Americans are in for a big surprise. We seem to have an expectation that other religions will accept us just because we are accepting of them.

Fandy states,

I have talked with many Muslims, especially in the West, who in public condemn violent acts but in private conversations say, "The West deserves this." In public, they will say it is a revenge for Palestine and Iraq, but in private I hear blind hatred, a virus that is taking over too many Muslim minds.

Read Fandy’s bio here and what he says here.

Hat Tip to Michael Medved.

We Didn’t Start the Fire

We Didn’t Start the Fire
It’s Was Always Burning Since the World’s Been Turning
But When We are Gone, Will It Burn On and On and On?


History in pictures and song. See it here.

The Great Raid-1945 & Today

Not much has changed in the manner of warfare from 1945 to present if you look at it from the perspective of the foot soldier. Today we have all sorts of modern gadgets to help the soldier, but ultimately it comes down to hand-to-hand combat. That’s what CSM Prosser, Lt. Col. Kurilla and Michael Yon experienced recently in Mosul. Read about it here and here.

In 1945, Lt. Col. Henry Mucci, Captain Robert Prince, the U. S. 6th Ranger Battalion, and Filipino resistance fighters endured the same down and dirty fighting as they rescued about 500 American POW’s held in the notorious Cabanatuan Japanese POW camp.

The movie Great Raid, currently in theaters, does an excellent job of depicting the horrors of captivity under Japanese control. When Japan began to lose the war, the Japanese military received instructions to begin killing the POW’s and destroying the evidence of war crimes committed against the captives. The movie opens with the Japanese military herding 150 POW’s into air-raid shelters and burning them to death with gasoline. As POW’s attempted to escape the fire, they were machine-gunned.

The raid was successfully accomplished with two American Rangers and 21 Filipino fighters dying at the hands of Japanese forces with a vast numerical superiority.

The movie does a good job of showing the face of fascism as it existed in 1945. The same fascist face exists today; only this time it is Islamic.

For those who maintain that war is never the answer, why don’t you ask the survivors of the Cabanatuan POW camp and their liberators what they think about war? There are still some of them alive today, including Captain (now Major, Ret.) Robert Prince.

Simi Valley Sophist in a Blog Contest

I am in a contest for the best blog of the week hosted by national radio talk show host Hugh Hewitt. The public votes on the five top picked blogs as determined by Hewitt, Generalissimo and Adam Youngman. The prize is linkage on hughhewitt.com & radioblogger.com. This is a highly coveted prize from an exposure point of view. Go to Radio Blogger, read the blogs by the five contestants and vote for your choice. Voting closes at noon PT on Monday, 8/29/05.

Update: My blog "Michael Yon, A True Hero" prevailed and is declared the Best Blog of the Week. Thanks to all those who voted.

Michael Yon, A True Hero

On 70 radio stations, Hugh Hewitt’s show is getting the word out about Michael Yon, an embedded author with an infantry unit in Mosul, Iraq. Even though Michael is formerly Special Forces, he is not allowed to carry a weapon. This week Michael’s unit ended up in a fire fight and hand-to-hand combat. Ambushed in an alley, Lt. Col. Kurilla is shot three times and down in the street with no cover, but still able to return fire. CSM Prosser sprints forward engaging the enemy, discards an empty weapon and continues the battle in a building in hand-to-hand combat. The two remaining American soldiers in the alley fail to rally to the assistance of their comrades. Yon grabs Prosser’s empty weapon, obtains a full magazine from one of the soldiers, charges the weapon and joins the fight. The good guys win another battle with an incredible display of true grit.

Major Lawrence subsequently admonished Michael Yon and told him that the next time he picks up a weapon and fires it, he will be out of the area by the next day. I suspect that the Major’s admonishment fulfills his duty to uphold the Army’s regulations. He can report to his superiors that he counseled and warned the civilian. I’ll bet that privately Major Lawrence will toast Michael Yon for being a true warrior.

It is in times of crisis that man often responds and demonstrates his true mettle. Michael Yon has been described as a modern day Ernie Pyle. He is more than that. He is a modern day Audie Murphy, as well. Michael is in good company with the Deuce Four battalion.

Read Michael’s post entitled, “Gates of Fire.”

Update: This blog is in the running for the Hugh Hewitt blog of the week. Got to Radio Blogger, read each of the blogs in the competiton, and vote for your favorite.

Update: My blog "Michael Yon, A True Hero" prevaled and was declared the Blog of the Week. Thanks to all who voted.

Shame on the Los Angeles Times for Its Race Agenda

While there is plenty of condemnation that is appropriate for the Los Angeles Times, kudos to the Los Angeles Daily News and the Ventura County Star. I am talking about the arrest of foreign born commercial burglary suspects. See my article, Welcome to America, Now Please Rip Us Off. Both the LA Daily News and the VC Star mentioned that the suspects were from Latin America. Not the LA Times. Not a single word was written to describe the suspects with the exception of listing the primary crooks Hispanic name.

The Ventura County Star had a reader comment on its online version deriding the paper for not printing that the suspects were illegal aliens. The reader claimed:

Does anyone notice how the STAR refuses to name the many of suspects as "illegal aliens," as multiple broadcast news outlets did Tuesday night

There was no mention in the press release media package about the immigration status of the suspects. I did not hear any broadcast news reports on the arrests so I can not judge whether or not the information was released by the Sheriff.

In these contentious times, the LA Times does not have the guts to report the news accurately and responsibly. That’s probably because the truth is in opposition to the newspaper’s agenda.

Violent Professions

The anti-war crowd is again yammering about our killed and wounded military personnel. We haven’t really heard this sort of thing since Vietnam. The mantra then and now is that we are involved in an illegal war and that we must bring the troops home because too many are dying. Military personnel are depicted as victims of their country’s capriciousness. From the liberal/leftist point-of-view, no war is worth the cost. So it is not surprising that we are hearing the same old song again.

There is one big difference this time. The military personnel are all volunteers. There are no draftees. Each and every military person knew when signing up that there was a potential to be placed in harm’s way. That’s why the military teaches you how to fire weapons, drive tanks and fly planes.

Selecting a job as a soldier is similar in some respects to selecting a job as a police officer. Each is trained to confront and react violently if necessary. And each knows that his death is a possibility. Each year in the U.S. 150-170 police officers are killed in the line of duty. We mourn each one, but there is no call to pull back the police from their dangerous mission every day.

Society needs its warriors: soldiers; and police officers alike. They take a risk for us every day, and that is what they are paid to do. We honor them in life and in death.

I think that the anti-war crowd is disingenuous about their concern for the welfare of the military troops. They are simply using it as a mechanism to bash their political opponents and to play on the emotions of the general public.

Welcome to America, Now Please Rip Us Off

The Ventura County Sheriff’s Department held a news conference today and announced:

Detectives from the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department, Thousand Oaks Police Department, Moorpark Police Department, and the Simi Valley Police Department formed a multi-jurisdictional task force in response to thefts that plagued businesses in Ventura County.

A large criminal organization engaging in a criminal enterprise throughout nine states and impacting crime victims in 67 cities has been dismantled. The group has been responsible for thefts committed by highly organized and disciplined teams of thieves in conjunction with a large scale stolen property distribution business (fencing operation), which has been in operation for the last several years in the Southwestern United States. Investigators infiltrated the organization, which has now culminated the four month investigation resulting in numerous arrests and a substantial seizure of property.

The news media information packet detailed that the burglars have plagued the Southwestern U.S. for 3 ½ years. The task force arrested 23 people and recovered 25,700 pieces of stolen property worth 3 ½ million dollars and $200,000 in cash. A total of 215 victims were identified. For the most part, the victims of the thefts were landscaping and construction companies. A number of those companies went out of business as a result of the thefts.

The places of birth of the arrestees were:

1. Mexico-9
2. Honduras-8
3. El Salvadore-4
4. Guatemala-1
5. Lebanon-1
6. U.S.-0

No mention was made of the citizenship or immigration status of the arrestees. Regardless of whether these individuals are naturalized citizens, legal or illegal migrants, they have come to this most generous country and abused our hospitality. These criminals are parasites on society, and they deserve to spend a long time in prison. Upon completion of their sentences, they need to be deported to their home countries. If any are naturalized citizens, their citizenship should be revoked.

Maybe we should run a pool to see if anyone can guess the number of illegal aliens in the group. Tomorrow the MSM should have this story in print. Let’s see if anyone is going to tell us the answer. I wonder if anyone asked that question of the Sheriff.

Why Sheehan Does Not Deserve a 2nd Audience with the President

To answer the question as to whether or not Cindy Sheehan is warranted a second audience with President Bush, it is necessary to examine who Cindy Sheehan really is. Let’s look first at who we think that she is today. We know that she lost Casey Sheehan, her 24-year-old son, to the fighting in Iraq. We know that she is an anti-war activist. We know that she is estranged in at least some manner from her family: her husband is divorcing her; and the extended family signed a public letter disavowing her anti-war activities. We know that she has stated that this country is not worth someone dying in its service. We know that she considers President Bush a murderer for causing the death of her son. We know that she has stated that had she known of what was to be that she would have taken her son out of this country to keep him from joining the military.

What was Cindy Sheehan prior to the death of her son? That’s a little harder to know. Relatives reported that she was anti-war, but we don’t know if she was an activist or not. Whatever her beliefs, she obviously was not able to persuade her son from joining the military. For that matter, she may not have even tried. Since her son had recently re-enlisted, it is likely that he joined the military while there were no U.S. conflicts.

So out of all of this, we know that Cindy Sheehan is at least two persons in regards to the question of whether or not she deserves a second audience with President Bush: she is the grieving mother of a lost serviceman; and she is an anti-war activist.

As a grieving mother she did meet with the President, and newspaper accounts relate that she was complimentary toward the President regarding his demeanor and empathy toward the family. Not every family losing a serviceman or woman has the privilege of meeting the President.

Despite the MSM and some bloggers depicting her as having made a sacrifice in the death of her son, she did not make a sacrifice. As I wrote previously “…Sheehan, is a victim of circumstances because her son was taken from her. She did not make a sacrifice. A sacrifice requires a deliberated giving, an offering. This woman gave nothing. Her son was an adult, and he made his own decision. He made the offering that became a sacrifice.” Read Mark Steyn on the infantilization of our service people.

Cindy Sheehan has no special status in expressing her First Amendment rights directly to the President. As an anti-war activist with no other credentials and nothing else to bring to the president’s table, Sheehan does not deserve any more attention from the President than does any other citizen. The fact that she is camping on his doorstep is irrelevant. She is exercising her First Amendment rights, just as I am doing in writing this blog.

Clearly Cindy Sheehan does not warrant a second visit with the President. What would be the purpose? To rant and rave and say the same irresponsible things that she has already stated?

Mr. President, do not succumb to the demands of someone who does not believe that this country is deserving of the sacrifice made by her son. To do so would compound the dishonor to both Casey Sheehan and the United States of America.

Mr. Martinez, Your Saying It Does Not Make It So

Al Martinez is a master story teller, and he has spun a whopper of a tale. I’m just sorry to say that he got it all wrong in his piece, “Sometimes tranquillity (sp) is merely a fairy tale.” That’s the problem with picking up the story line midway through the scene. In Mr. Martinez’ tale, Ameripax is ruled by Emperor Sweet George II, who wants for nothing more than for his kingdom to be at peace. A noble cause, of which all would agree. The trouble is that Mr. Martinez’ George II is only eager for peace in Ameripax, while he sends the army to conquer foreign nations. Mr. Martinez has George II running off covering his ears after his fawning assistants have tried to shield him from the objections of some of his subjects.

To set the story correct, let’s start a little further back in history. The war, now prosecuted by George II, did not begin with his reign as Commander-in-Chief. It began as a small ember many years prior and burst into flame when Iranians took U.S. Embassy personnel hostage. That was in 1979, twenty two years before the September 2001 attacks. And, you may recall that it was under the watch of Emperor The World Is Not Nearly As Left As I Want It To Be Carter. Speaking the impotent left dialect of the Kingdom’s official language, Emperor Carter was not able to secure the release of the hostages. That’s not really surprising because Islamists are not in the least bit intimidated by impotent threats and appeasement talk. The hostages were, however, immediately released upon the inauguration of politically incorrect King Ron, whose reputation preceded him to the throne. The Kingdom subsequently suffered through a series of Islamo-fascist attacks under the reign of various kings and emperors.

Emperor What Is Sex Billy Bob and Co Emperor I Want To Be A Dictator Hillary reigned over the kingdom as: the Khobar Towers Military complex was bombed in 1996; the Kenya and Tanzania U.S. Embassies were bombed in 1998; and the U.S.S. Cole was bombed in 2000. The Chief of the Department of No Justice Unless It Fits Our Viewpoint Reno oversaw, outside of existing law, the promulgation of rules and regulations which forbade the sharing of information between the intelligence community and law enforcement. And thus one year before the bombings of the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, the military was afraid to share information with the FBI on the bombers to be. Despite the first bombing of the World Trade Center and the other bombings during their reign, the Co-Emperors showed no interest in preparing the citizens for the darkening clouds on the horizon. The world’s most powerful lothario was busy pursuing and seducing every woman he could get. And, Hillary was busy feeding him women whom she deemed would neither challenge her position of power nor her hopes of being catapulted onto the Emperor’s throne.

Over the years, vast numbers accepted the elitist lies oozing into the empty skulls of college students since before the war in Vietnam. The masses were spoon fed the gruel by the chicken foot symbol wearing elite of higher education.

During all of this time, many of the good citizens of the Kingdom amused themselves with sensational celebrity criminal trials, drooled over false heroes of Hollyweird, and other such tripe while blissfully unaware that their Kingdom was in the process of bifurcating into two great masses of conflicting viewpoint: the Reds; and the Blues.

The Reds believe in the traditional values espoused and practiced by those who settled this Kingdom after escaping the tyranny of old Europe. They believe in such quaint ideas as personal responsibility, charity, freedom, limited government, and helping your neighbor.

The Blues, on the other hand, believe in the socialism of new Europe. Paramount is progressive views such as big government redistributing wealth by confiscating it from those who earned it and giving it to those who don’t earn it. Blues also believe that it is they who are the truly compassionate. In truth, their system of handouts enslaves the people and saps their ability to stand on their own two feet. Of course, the Blues don’t think they are doing this. They just think that they know what is best for the little people. And, since the little people obviously don’t have the ability to compete in a capitalist world, the Blues will take care of them with patently racist and discriminatory programs.

The official Kingdom Press, also called the main stream media, was content with a near monopoly which allowed them to slant and skew the “news” to fit their pre-packaged elitist left agenda. The MSM abandoned any semblance of responsibility they might have previously felt to provide the citizens with honest news reporting and analysis. That is not much of a surprise since most of the professional journalist class is a product of a university system corrupted with leftist professors. Seldom was a word spoken about the chanting and murmuring of “Allah Akbar” across the globe from Mecca to London and back.

Then a strange thing happened during the reign of Emperors Bill & Hillary. The Reds heard a voice, which resonated within their hearts, as it spoke the language of traditional personal values. The Reds hoisted the messenger to their shoulders and sent him to the Palace in Washington D.C. Despite the best efforts to lie, cheat and steal the elections by the minions of I Invented The Internet Gore and Flip Flop Kerry, the thefts did not happen. Wailing and gnashing of leftist teeth occurred on both coasts of the Kingdom. Cries of anguish rung forth in liberal indignation. But, the will of the people was done and a foul taste remains for the losers.

Emperor George II began his reign unremarkably with seemingly no particular inclination toward foreign policy. And, it was OK with the Reds since they now had their man in office and he spoke their language. The Blues, of course, were totally indignant and continue to falsely claim that the Reds stole the elections. That is a good bit of projection by the Blues considering their own attempts to steal same.

Then there was a loud noise and the Reds and Blues said alike, “What was that?” Emperor George II awoke and found his true calling as a leader. He responded that the noise was Islamo-fascists and that they are intent on killing each of the infidel citizens of Ameripax. At first, the entire Kingdom was in accord with Emperor George II’s plan to destroy the Taliban supporters of Osama bin Ladin. And, when the world’s intelligence organizations were in total agreement that Saddam had WMD’s, the Kingdom agreed to go to war with Iraq. Now the world’s intelligence organizations have egg on their collective face. It turns out that at the time of the invasion of Iraq that there was no longer a viable WMD program in place. The facts don’t matter, and the Blues continue to claim that Emperor George II lied about the WMD’s. Lying is not the same as mistaken, but you can’t get the Blues to admit the obvious. The Blues hate Emperor George II, and they will do and say anything to try and facilitate the removal of his crown.

Today, the citizens of the Kingdom do have the right to voice their contrary opinions. They won’t if all the churches are replaced with mosques. Emperor George II grasped the concept. Perhaps that is because he is Christian, and he understands the fervency of religion.

Emperor George II does not require only good news; he simply has the strength of character to follow through on a course of action that he finds morally responsible, and he disregards the whining of the ungrateful.

Once again the MSM is fanning the flames of anti-war sentiment. Once again the MSM is trying to sap the resolve of the Kingdom. For some reason they must think that is better to do nothing and to wait to be slaughtered like livestock.

The woman, I Am Grieving For The Loss Of My 24 Year Old Son In Iraq & I Reject His Decision To Serve His Kingdom Sheehan, is a victim of circumstances because her son was taken from her. She did not make a sacrifice. A sacrifice requires a deliberated giving, an offering. This woman gave nothing. Her son was an adult, and he made his own decision. He made the offering that became a sacrifice. There is an important difference, but it may be too subtle for some.

Here’s the situation today. Unless the Kingdom gets totally committed to the destruction of Islamo-fascism, it will suffer the same fate as Israel and Europe. The Islamo-fascists are a determined lot fired with the enthusiasm of religion. They will not be dissuaded short of annihilation. As a Born Again Christian man, Emperor George II understands the fanaticism of our enemies. The apologist with liberal/leftists views can not see the proverbial forest for the trees. He will be bewildered as he hears “Allah Akbar” and his scream is transformed to the gurgling sound of air and blood escaping his slit throat.

You did get one thing right Mr. Martinez; tranquility is a fairy tale. I still hear the chanting of “Allah Akbar!”

Iraq The Model Writes to Cindy Sheehan

Cindy Sheehan, you are in pain and turmoil and your leftist views do not coincide with a desire to assist a brutalized people in their time of need. You are the epitome of the self-centered, do-good left that won’t make a personal sacrifice on behalf of another person. You did not make a sacrifice, your loss was forced upon you. Your son willingly made the sacrifice. You dishonor his memory. Your leftist philosophy will only require another mother to cry in the future.

Excerpts from an incredible letter:

I realize how tragic your loss is and I know how much pain there is crushing your heart and I know the darkness that suddenly came to wrap your life and wipe away your dreams and I do feel the heat of your tears that won't dry until you find the answers to your question; why you lost your loved one?

Ma'am, we asked for your nation's help and we asked you to stand with us in our war and your nation's act was (and still is) an act of ultimate courage and unmatched sense of humanity.

Our request is justified, death was our daily bread and a million Iraqi mothers were expecting death to knock on their doors at any second to claim someone from their families.

Your face doesn't look strange to me at all; I see it everyday on endless numbers of Iraqi women who were struck by losses like yours.

We cried out of joy the day your son and his comrades freed us from the hands of the devil and we went to the streets not believing that the nightmare is over.

We practiced our freedom first by kicking and burning the statues and portraits of the hateful idol who stole 35 years from the life of a nation.

For the first time air smelled that beautiful, that was the smell of freedom. Your son sacrificed his life for a very noble cause…No, he sacrificed himself for the most precious value in this existence; that is freedom.

Hawaiian E Pluribus Unum Destroyed? Where’s the ACLU?

A report in today’s Walls Street Journal:

The Senate is poised to sanction the creation of a racially exclusive government by and for Native Hawaiians who satisfy a blood test. The new race-based sovereign that would be summoned into being by the so-called Akaka Bill would operate outside the U.S. Constitution and the nation's most cherished civil rights statutes.

It was not too long ago that the courts struck down the use of state government monies to fund exclusive schools for Hawaiian indigenous natives only. Now read (WSJ subscription required) how Hawaiian special interest is poised to destroy the concepts of a racially neutral society.

Update 8/21/05 Reader Lee provided in the Coments section the address for a detailed report on the proposed legislation. His address has a "." at the end of the ...pdf which should not be there. Here is the correct link: http://rpc.senate.gov/_files/Jun2205NatHawSD.pdf
Thank you Lee.

Domestic Islamic Terrorism in Los Angeles

Terrorism is generally divide into two categories, domestic and international depending upon whether or not the culprits are citizens of this country or not. The distinction is fairly clear when comparing the suspects in the World Trade Center and Pentagon incidents with the Oklahoma City Murrah Federal Building. That is, of course, if you agree that Timothy McVeigh acted without the assistance of foreign help, as most seem to think. Now the picture is starting to get a little foggy with the arrest of two Los Angeles residents last month. I blogged on the incident, Black Islamic Terrorism and Crime Linked in LA. I opined that it was likely that the suspects were black, Islamic, and gang members. An article in today’s LA Times confirms my opinion.

A new era in domestic terrorism in now clearly demonstrated to be present in the Los Angeles area. There is no reason to assume that LA is unique as compared to the other major urban centers in the country. Thus, there is another whole new area that needs to be examined in the assessment of the likelihood of terrorism for the U.S.

One other little tidbit: a Pakistani was also arrested.

From Woo Hoo to I Hate You

Every middle age man, who ever got the bright idea that joining a health club after years of couch potato activity, will relate to this piece. Laughter is good for the soul. Enjoy!

A Grieving Fool, A Leftist Tool

A Poem by Russ Vaughn & a News Report:

A Useful Death

A mother's anguish turns to ire,
Her liquid tears to spears of fire,
A useful fool for the liberal Left,
All hatred now, no more bereft.
The honor which her son embraced,
Is now dishonored, now disgraced,
As his mother stands atop his grave,
From there to shriek, from there to rave.

Yes, some are maddened in their grief,
And grief can surely change belief;
But this woman's views, her family say,
Have long been held, long fore today,
Enabling Leftists to use her grieving,
For Moore deception, Moore deceiving.
I see this mother as a willing fool,
A useful Moorish Code Pinko tool.

As one who fought in another place,
I sorrow for this boy's disgrace,
By a zealot mother grafting grief
Stealing his brave deeds, an honor thief,
Usurping his valor to claim her share,
Five minutes of fame in Media's glare.
Her platform one you don't see often:
A dishonored, flag-draped, soldier's coffin.

I can hear Michael Moore muttering under his breath,
"Yeah, this was really a useful death."

Russ Vaughn
2d Bn, 327th Infantry
101st Airborne Division
Vietnam 65-66

Cindy Sheehan is quoted:

"My son was killed in 2004. I am not paying my taxes for 2004. You killed my son, George Bush, and I don't owe you a penny...you give my son back and I'll pay my taxes. Come after me (for back taxes) and we'll put this war on trial."

"And now I'm going to use another 'I' word - impeachment - because we cannot have these people pardoned. They need to be tried on war crimes and go to jail."

Black Panther Arrests in Assassination of Berkeley PD Officer

In 1970, a Berkeley police officer, Ronald Tsukamoto was assassinated and the murderers have never been brought to trial. Two men, thought to be former Black Panther Party members, have been arrested. Known former members of the BPP state that the two men were not members. Officials counter that the motivation for the murder was to raise the stature of the group. The BPP, ( info on the BPP here, here, here, and here) was a prominent violent black revolutionary group and darling of the leftist movement.

For many revolutionary groups, the group vitality diminishes as personal agendas, in-fighting, death and imprisonment takes its toll. The bravado of many young revolutionary ideologues, who survive their violent phase, fades and is replaced with the practicality that the cause so much embraced failed to ignite the passions of the masses. Such is the case of with the BPP. The BPP is dead.

Today the vaunted BPP is reduced to efforts of supporting their non-profit organization to memorialize and capitalize on their infamy. The mighty communist oriented BPP is reduced to hawking, in a good capitalist fashion, their hot sauce named, "Burn Baby Burn."

A few leftist ideologues learned the error of their ways and evolved into conservatism. David Horowitz is an example.

In the 1970s he created the Oakland Community Learning Center, an inner city school for disadvantaged children that was run by the Black Panther Party.

In the 1990s he created the Individual Rights Foundation, which led the battle against speech codes on college campuses, and compelled the entire “president’s cabinet” of the University of Minnesota to undergo five hours of sensitivity training in the First Amendment for violating the free speech rights of its students. In 1996 he was a spokesman for the California Civil Rights Initiative, which barred government from discriminating against “or granting preferential treatment to any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin.” This year he has joined Ward Connerly’s campaign to pass a Racial Privacy Initiative. This is an anti-racial profiling initiative that would prevent government agencies from asking citizens about their race. David Horowitz is an outspoken opponent of censorship and racial preferences, and a defender of the rights of minorities and other groups under attack -- including the rights of blacks, gays, women, Jews, Muslims, Christians and white males.

Michael Medved is another example of a leftist, (though I don’t know that he was associated with the BPP), who eventually saw the light and made “Right Turns, ” which is the name of his successful book.

Hillary Rodham-Clinton, on the other hand, has probably never abandoned her leftist ideology. She was a “…co-editor of the far-left journal called The Yale Review of Law and Social Action” which published articles in support of the BPP. (Klein, The Truth About Hillary, p.71) It is far more likely that she has simply made a pragmatic decision to disguise her leftist nature in the furtherance of attaining political power.

UPDATE: 8/13/05

Law enforcement officials say they have arrested the correct people in the murder of Ofc. Ronald Tsukamoto, but the District Attorney refused the case. No charges are being filed at this time.

Bionic Terrorist

Michael Yon describes a gripping scenario as the vehicle he is riding within approaches a massive IED buried in the highway. Michael tells of the deranged would-be bomber that is captured to live another day despite the best efforts of the insurgents to send him to Allah. Kind of like the dogs I and the LA Times wrote about.

The Bionic Terrorist seems mentally disturbed. He's poxied with panic, his face contorted by abject terror. Clearly, he is deranged, possibly explaining his prodigious running ability. The enemy is known to use and discard mentally-challenged persons. The poor guy probably doesn't even know what language we speak.

Simi Valley Sophist Cited by the Washington Post—More on Jihad Jane

Gee guys, all I said in the Simi Valley Sophist was, “No matter how you slice and dice it, a traitor is still a traitor. Jane Fonda is back in the anti-war game, and this time it is the war in Iraq.” And, it landed me in Howard Kurtz’s piece The Blame Jane Game in the Washington Post. Kurtz states,

It took only a few nanoseconds for the right side of the blogosphere to get fired up. It took, in fact, only two words: Jane Fonda.

Actually Mr. Kurtz, it did not take me “a few nanoseconds….to get fired up.” I’ve been fired up since the Vietnam War Days. You see, I was classified 1Y and not drafted for medical reasons. And, now I seem to be suffering some sort of guilt for having not done my part along with my fellow citizens. It galled me then and it galls me now that Jane Fonda crossed the line from First Amendment exercise to aid and comfort of the enemy. To make matters worse she was given a free ticket.

Fonda is not the only one to blame for the demoralization of the American public and the subsequent political fallout that resulted in the ignominious withdrawal from Vietnam. I wrote about that in the Simi Valley Sophist: We were Complicit in Fonda’s Treason: Let’s Not Do It Again. Jihad Jane may again be up to her old tricks, but I won’t stand idly by this time.

P.E.T.A.—Iraq is Calling

The war in Iraq is really getting out-of-hand. The Los Angeles Times reported today (Servants -- and Weapons -- of War) that Iraqi insurgents are strapping explosives on dogs and remotely blowing them up. Not only that, but they also did it to a donkey. Seems like I heard about a donkey demise in the Palestinian area some time ago. But wait, it seems that the use of dogs as bomb fodder is not received well in Iraq, even by insurgent sympathetic clerics:

Despite a common prejudice in the Muslim world against dogs, which are considered unclean, even the most virulent clerical opponents of the U.S. presence in Iraq have decried the use of canines as proxies in the war.

"Dogs have been used in many areas by insurgents throughout Iraq" to carry explosive devices, said Noori Noori, inspector-general at the Interior Ministry.

"They used mentally retarded people for operations during the elections, so why shouldn't they use animals?"…Muslim Scholars Assn., a hard-line Sunni Arab clerical organization sympathetic to insurgents, called the practice un-Islamic. "Our religion does not permit us to hurt animals,"

Let me figure this out. It’s OK to blow up mentally retarded people, but not dogs? If a “true believer” blows himself up for Allah, he goes straight heaven and is awarded 72 virgins. If a dog is blown up for the glory of Allah, what does the dog get?

Obviously there is a need for the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (P.E.T.A.) to get involved. I went to the P.E.T.A. web site, and I did not find any reference to the Iraqi canine abuse. There were action items about dogs in hot cars, etc., but no mention of Iraq. It’s pretty hot in Iraq so you might think that P.E.T.A. would have already initiated an investigation in that part of the world. I know that they don’t have a chapter in Iraq, so the field is wide open. I’ll bet they could get a whole basketful of dinars donated to their coffers if they would just put on a little demonstration in Baghdad. Maybe Jihad Jane will champion their cause. Can’t you just see JJ sitting on an IED (improvised explosive device) protesting the war and canine abuse? Please, no one write me and suggest that you would be happy to detonate her!

Simi Valley Sophist: Liar

On the occasion of starting my fourth month of blogging, I thought I ought to say something about why I titled my blog “Simi Valley Sophist.”

The Simi Valley part is easy. I live there. Simi Valley is a bedroom community of 116,048 residents (according to the Chamber of Commerce web site) nestled into the eastern border of Ventura County, which is contiguous with that little known place, the City of Los Angeles. Fortunately, there is a small range of hills separating Simi Valley from the city of “lost” angels.

I deemed it important to include “Simi Valley” in the name as a way of identifying to all that I hail from a relatively conservative city, an oasis and refuge from the inefficiencies and insensitivities of mega-city politics and services of Los Angeles. I remember some 20 years ago traveling from Los Angeles County to Simi Valley while my new home was being built. Each time I drove over the pass between Simi Valley and Los Angeles, I experienced a euphoric feeling, a freedom, an escape, if you will, from the stress of the “Big City.” The feeling was compounded when I had an occasion to interact with the Simi Valley Building Department and discovered City employees who were polite, informative, helpful, and easy to understand. Living in Los Angeles County, I did not even know that the concept of city employees being there to assist the public existed anymore.

It would be untrue to say that Simi Valley is not tainted by the braying of leftists, characteristic of university towns and larger cities on the left coast. But, they are mostly inconsequential and laughable. In some ways it is good to have them around. It is a reminder that the community should not be complacent about requiring its government to reflect the majority values.

And, what exactly are the values of the City, home of the Ronald Reagan Library? Well, it is not the right-wing bastion that some like to claim. It is not the racist community the MSM branded it at the conclusion of the State trial of the four Los Angeles Police Department officers in the Rodney King incident. Rather it is a conservatively oriented and tolerant community.

I remember talking to the organizer of a gay and lesbian pride festival a few years back. He was a resident of Los Angeles and was intent on bringing a pride festival to Simi Valley. I suspect that he wanted to flaunt the gay lifestyle in the face of the City. He expressed to me his concern that the community would rise up against him in alarm and that all manner of evils might befall him and the event. I assured him that no such thing would occur. I opined that I doubted that many of the community would attend his event and that they would not stand in his way either. Such was the case, and according to the promoter most of the attendees where not residents of the city.

Now, to the sophist part. Please note the definition from Brainy Dictionary.

The art or process of reasoning; logic.

The practice of a sophist; fallacious reasoning; reasoning sound in appearance only.

Dr. Kenneth Jernigan opens his piece entitled, “Blindness: The Circle of Sophistry” (Hat Tip to Hugh Hewitt) with:

Sophistry, we are told, is an argument or option which is clever and plausible,but false and misleading. To illustrate let as consider color. We learn from the dictionary that color is: The property of reflecting light of a particular wavelength. In other words if an object is green, the color (or wavelength) green is reflected back, and all other colors (or wavelengths) are absorbed. White, as everyone knows, is the absence of color, and black is the opposite. Yet, what we call black reflects no light waves at all and is, thus, the absence of color white what we call white (again to quote the dictionary) is: The reflection of all the rays that produce color. Therefore, the logic is inevitable: black is white, and white is black.

I wish I could say that the linguistic sleight-of-hand which I have just performed is symbolic of nothing more vicious than verbal gymnastics or a pleasant game, but that is not the way of it. Sophistry is no toy. It is one of the most deadly weapons in the arsenal of tyranny. It has bedeviled and bedazzled humanity since the beginning of history. If (as the saying goes) hypocrisy is the tribute which vice pays to virtue, then sophistry is the tribute which lies pay to the truth.

Sophistry takes its name from the sophists of ancient Athens. It was the principal instrument which they used first to discredit, then to imprison, and finally to execute Socrates. It was big in the middle ages with the Inquisition and the burning of witches. It flourishes today in the twentieth century. All we need do to understand the power of clever and plausible but false and misleading words is to remember the twisted rhetoric of Joseph Goebels and Adolph Hitler. Except for the glitter and hypnotic lure of sophistry the Nazi tanks might never have rolled, and the death and destruction of the Second World War might never have been.

Referencing blindness, Dr. Jernigan writes:

The mistaken beliefs and false concepts are almost universally accepted by the general public, and when people lose their eyesight, they carry with them into blindness the erroneous ideas which they held when they were sighted. They then live the part they are expected to play and feed back to society the conceptions which it gave them in the first place. Likewise, those who are born blind are taught their roles from the beginning, and unless they are given counterbalancing information, they live as they are expected to live. They think as they are expected to think.

Dr. Jernigan quotes extensively from a newspaper interview wherein the reporter allegedly made erroneous assumptions. Then she wrote an article with inaccurate descriptions of his lifestyle that supported widely held inaccurate stereotypes about the blind.

The declining respect with which the public views MSM is demonstrated by the public’s reduction in TV viewership and the declining subscription rate for newspapers. That reduction can partially be explained as a result of sophistry on the part of MSM.

The sole reason that I cancelled my many years subscription to the Los Angeles Times was because the newspaper devolved to such a state that the agenda properly found in the editorial pages is found in news articles. The news portion of the paper is in truth engaging in sophistry, i.e., “fallacious reasoning; reasoning sound in appearance only” based upon agenda driven reporting.

In truth, all writers are subject to the pit falls of sophistry. We all come to conclusions based upon our understanding of facts and influenced by our values. The problem arises when our assumptions and prejudices blind us to other potential conclusions.

The question arises as to whether or not the sophistry making its way into speech, either verbal or written, is deliberate or not. Dr. Jernigan cites examples of both: the Nazi propaganda; and the newspaper article on his blindness.

To assume that I am any different from any other writer and have never written anything based upon an incomplete understanding is absurd. Therefore, I am as liable to engage in sophistry as the next writer. Well, maybe not. I have a real desire to be totally accurate, and I’m willing to amend my opinions as I garner additional information. But, my values are my values, and they will not change. And because of values, I don’t need to lie to support my positions.

So, a bit of humor. I can laugh at and don’t take myself too seriously. Thus, I don’t have any problem titling myself the “Simi Valley Sophist.” I feel sure that the readers will bring to my attention any sophistry on my part. They will try; but, you know that they will be wrong.

Prostitution & Porn: The Female Perspective

The female perspective? Now, that’s a novel idea. Who’d ever thought of such a thing? Even mentioning the concept suggests that there is more than one perspective. There is more than a male perspective? Oh, I know that there is more than one perspective: there is the liberal Hollywood concept; there is a conservative Judeo/Christian and Islamic concept; and there are positions in between. But, I’m not talking about religious/political arguments, or about what males think, I’m talking about what females feel on a gut level. This is about what females think about the world’s “oldest profession.”

The well worn term, “the world’s oldest profession” implies that there has always been and there is likely always to be a willing seller and a willing buyer for a commodity that is so basic that its need demands fulfillment. Why is this so? Well obviously there are buyers who feel the need to purchase services with hard cold cash which are not sufficiently available otherwise. So where there is a need, there will be a vendor willing to fulfill that need for a price.

But what price does the vendor pay to be in this line of work? Well, Anne Bissell, a reformed prostitute, stakes out the popular position in her book, "Memoirs of a Sex Industry Survivor" that there is nothing positive about prostitution. She posits and that it is the abuse of females, oft times in childhood, that leads to a willingness to engage as a prostitute. Naturally Bissell believes that a prostitute is an emotionally and spiritually damaged person.

When discussing the legalizing of prostitution, Constance Penley, Ph.D. popular culture expert at the University of California Santa Barbara, states, “ When debating the issue, it is not appropriate to link child-trafficking with adult choices.”

An adjunct to prostitution is porn film work. “Not everyone is troubled by working in pornographic filmmaking either, Penley said. Now that the industry is so mainstreamed and has become relatively professionalized, many women use porn as a jumping-off place to go into something else, she said.”

Bissell counters:

"Using her body as a commodity either in prostitution or pornography erodes a woman's soul, said Venturan Anne Bissell, a former prostitute, recalling her own experience. "

"It was like being homeless in my own body," she said.

“She said it's impossible to distinguish the adult woman from the exploited child because, according to a nonprofit San Francisco-based anti-prostitution organization called Prostitution Research and Education, 75 percent of adult women who chose to be prostitutes endured some sort of sexual or physical violence as children. They enter womanhood so damaged that they can't make truly responsible choices when it comes to their bodies, Bissell and Simi Valley sexual abuse specialist Lee Reid, Ph.D., agreed.”

According to the quote above, “…75 percent of adult women who chose to be prostitutes endured some sort of sexual or physical violence as children.” The fact that there is the other 25% who chose to be prostitutes supports a conclusion that prostitution does not have to be associated with childhood abuse. The conclusion does not follow, therefore, that prostitution as an adult is necessarily emotionally and spiritually healthy for the female. Of course, it does not argue to the converse as well.

University of Wisconsin sociology professor John DeLamater, Ph.D. is the “…editor of the Journal of Sex Research, a trade journal for the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality, a nonprofit organization of professionals from different disciplines who are dedicated to the clinical study of human sexuality.”

“DeLamater said the extent of a woman's trauma after working as a prostitute seems to be linked to how much control she has over her business. Prostitutes with higher-paying clients, often known as "call girls," who work out of their own homes and set their own schedules, don't report as many negative after-effects, DeLamater said. "They are highly selective about who they date, let alone who they have sex with," he said. "Typically, they are quite healthy mentally and physically. Some of them report actually enjoying their lifestyle."

“Women who report the most trauma are the so-called "streetwalkers" who work for little money and risk physical and psychological harm.”

"They have virtually no protection from the elements, customers, cops or pimps," DeLamater said. "They have virtually no control over who they go with. They have a substantial risk of getting beaten up and not getting paid."

Bissell and Reid counter:

“Bissell said she believes that, no matter how well legal prostitution or adult films are monitored, women who get involved will suffer longterm psychological consequences.”

“Reid concurs: "Most people in porn or prostitution who sell themselves for sex suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder," she said. "You can't sell your body and feel good about yourself."

"There are psychic deaths or a physical death," Bissell agreed. "The sex industry kills one way or another."

There you have it. There is no agreement. Probably the correct conclusion is that most women in the sex trades have suffered abuse in childhood and are likely to suffer throughout adulthood. Some of the remaining 25% may not fall into a category of damaged emotions, and they may find the business to be satisfactory for them at the time that they engage in it.

Now that we have solved that issue, is it time to start on the moral aspect of prostitution and the porn industry? Not today.

Jihad Jane & Her Vegetable Oil Tour

The reader is liable to already know my position on Jihad Jane from here and here.

A contributor sent me his poem putting in perspective the upcoming vegetable oil trip. It is appropriately entitled:

Jihad Jane


What a prize to show for her life of toil,

A bus that runs on vegetable oil;

To keep it running will prove no strain,

Run a fuel line from her peanut brain.

As once again she shows us all

How wrong we are and how we'll fall.

She'll grant no quarter, cut no slack,

Get her picture taken on a camel's back.



Jihad Jane will show us once again,

She's smarter than all the President's men;

I doubt Sun Tzu could tell us more

Than Jihad Jane when it comes to war;

She'll save the world, bold Barbarella,

More wily and wise than any Army fella.

While she fancies herself truly Machiavellian

A more apt description is piggy Orwellian.



It's true Jane could write an encyclopedia

On fooling the drooling mainstream media.

Princes of primetime breathlessly follow;

Sputum she spouts they eagerly swallow.

Trumpet her tripe as trustworthy truth,

Pushing her pap down the throats of our youth.

Reporters will climb right on down in that sewer,

Covering every mile of Jane's veggie-fueled tour.



While wiser minds wait, holding their breath,

Warily wondering just how much death

All her agitprop antics will incite this time,

And whose lives will be forfeit for one fool's crime.

In most scripts of life, we become wiser with age;

But this airhead actress cannot get to that page.

So she'll be well remembered, as well she should,

As the dumbest damned broad in Hollywood.

Russ Vaughn

2d Bn, 327th Infantry

101st Airborne Division

Vietnam 65-66

Russ tips his hat to Ollie North for the title.

British Are Not Like the Spanish Wimps

I previously asked, “Will the British people respond to the London terrorist attacks like Americans or like the Spanish?” The verdict is in and the British are hanging tough. Prime Minister Tony Blair announced that Britain will start deporting those who advocate terror.

“Prime Minister Tony Blair today promised new measures to close down mosques and bar or deport clerics deemed to be fostering hatred and violence…”

"Let no one be in any doubt…the rules of the game are changing."

“The new measures take aim for the first time at Islamic Web sites and book stores that are considered extremist and at "networks and particular organizations of concern." In addition, Mr. Blair said that any foreigners in Britain in "active engagement" with those sites or groups would be considered for deportation.”

Naturally, Muslim groups in Britain are protesting. They are probably no more trustworthy than CAIR in the U.S.

Tony Blair is definitely on the left. And yet, his national security and attendant foreign policy resembles that of conservatives. Blair does have his far left legislative detractors, but the British left in general is not protesting. Sounds like in this case, the British left has more common sense than the American left. Come to think of it, the American left resembles the Spanish.

CAIR Quick to Condemn Israeli Terrorist

In Israel, an AWOL soldier sets out to kill Arabs and does so by shooting four Arab Israeli citizens on a bus. “Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon condemned the attack, calling it "a reprehensible act of a bloodthirsty Jewish terrorist who sought to attack innocent Israeli citizens."”

Israeli terrorists acts do occur and have done so since prior to the formation of the State of Israel. For example, the infamous Irgun conducted a terrorist bombing on the King David Hotel in 1946. Islamists and leftists categorize the Israeli military actions against Israel’s enemies as acts of terrorism. Despite Islamic and leftist claims, Israeli terrorist acts are far and few between.

In reference to the Israeli terrorist incident, CAIR quickly put out a press release yesterday, "This brutal attack on innocent civilians once again demonstrates that terrorism and extremism can rise out of any faith.” Why is it that CAIR has historically ignored Islamic terrorism? Prior to the 7/28/05 CAIR support of a fatwa, CAIR’s voice in dissent against Islamic terrorism was absent. They certainly did not take any delay in denouncing a single Israeli terrorist attack and pointing out that other religions have terrorism as well. Only an idiot could somehow find some sort of moral equivalence between the amount of Islamic terrorism and terrorism associated with any another current religion.

I wrote, “I, for one, am not convinced about the sincerity of CAIR.” That opinion still stands.

"You Be Safe Out There"

“May the weight of your sacrifice sit gently upon their shoulders.” I wrote that line in my posting yesterday, “Ofc. Michael F. Clark Remembered Today.” Yesterday was the 10th anniversary of the murder of Simi Valley Police Officer Michael Clark. It was a day wherein the Simi Valley Police Department began each Patrol briefing with a message of reflection by one of the police department’s chaplains.

Maybe the 10th anniversary of the death of a local police officer is not important enough to the main stream media to warrant a news article. That’s what I thought yesterday when I could not find any articles in the three main newspapers in the Ventura County area: Los Angeles Times; Los Angeles Daily News; and the Ventura County Star. Not the case, today the Ventura County Star ran an article.

Clearly the sacrifice made by Jenifer Clark and son, Bayley, does weigh heavily on their shoulders. Bayley, who was five months old when his father was murdered, is now asking questions about his dad. Referencing the man who murdered her husband, Jenifer stated, “Because of this man, I've had to teach my son how much his father loved him.”

Now Bayley fears that his mother will die.

“Last September, Jenifer received a diagnosis of breast cancer. She underwent surgery and radiation.”

“When he asks about that, she kids him by saying, "Heaven doesn't want me, and hell is afraid I'll take over."

“She is one take-charge woman. On Thursday -- the anniversary of the slaying --Jenifer walked up to a cop eating lunch at a fast-food joint.”

“She told him her husband was a police officer and he had been killed on duty 10 years ago that very day”. Jenifer left the officer with a statement common among the police community, "You be safe out there."

"Make no mistake about it, we are at war."

Pres. Bush and some of his advisors seem to be at odds over the nuances about what it is we are actually doing in response the attacks upon this country. Ever since 9/11/01, Pres. Bush has said that we are in a war against terrorism. That is technically not correct since terrorism is an act and you can’t go to war against an act. You can only go to war with an entity, a people or a country. This nuance is not lost on the President,

“Mr. Bush made a nod to the criticism that "war on terror" was a misleading phrase in the sense that the enemy is not terrorism…”

“"Make no mistake about it, this is a war against people who profess an ideology, and they use terror as a means to achieve their objectives,"…”

I was criticized in a previous blog when a writer thought that I did not know what constituted a war. For the edification of my reader:

Merriam-Webster: War Defined:
“Etymology: Middle English werre, from Old North French, of Germanic origin; akin to Old High German werra strife; akin to Old High German werran to confuse1 a (1) : a state of usually open and declared armed hostile conflict between states or nations (2) : a period of such armed conflict (3) : STATE OF WAR b : the art or science of warfare c (1) obsolete : weapons and equipment for war (2) archaic : soldiers armed and equipped for war2 a : a state of hostility, conflict, or antagonism b : a struggle or competition between opposing forces or for a particular end…”

Since war is an act directed toward people, let’s say it as it is. We are in a war against Islamo-fascism. The President knows this,

“"Make no mistake about it, this is a war against people who profess an ideology, and they use terror as a means to achieve their objectives,"…”

This is not a war against the Islam that is practiced as a peaceful religion, despite the Koran’s aggressive language. What the President needs to say openly and clearly is that we are at war with Islamo-fascism. Make no bones about it. State it as it is.

Ofc. Michael F. Clark Remembered Today

Michael F Clark Rubbing 1
Originally uploaded by simi valley sophist.

In 1995 they numbered 163. Every year, year in and year out, it’s the same story. Sometimes more, and sometimes less: Peace officers dying in the line of duty. And, so it was in Simi Valley ten years ago today, August 4, 1995. It was a hot Friday afternoon, as August is wont to be in Southern California. Simi Valley Police Officer Michael F. Clark responded to a residence to check the welfare of what turned out to be a suicidal male. As Clark and a second officer approached the house, shots rang out from within and Clark lay mortally wounded in the front yard.

Michael Clark was fairly new to the Simi Valley Police Department having recently transferred from the Los Angeles Police Department after serving there for 5 years. Michael’s death was the first on-duty death for Simi P.D. in its then 24 year history.

At the time of his death, Michael Clark was just eight days short of celebrating his 29th birthday. He left a wife and a young son.

This incident reminds us that even the bucolic streets of a relatively safe city can suddenly be stained by the blood of those charged with protecting us. And, so it is and will always be. Men and women will put their welfare in danger’s way both at home and in foreign lands to protect us and our way of life.

We are indebted to you for your sacrifice Michael. And, we grieve with your wife and son for your passing. May the weight of your sacrifice sit gently upon their shoulders.

Michael Frederick Clark
Date of Birth: August 12, 1966
Date of Appointed: March 21, 1995
End of Watch: August 4, 1995

Visit the Michael F. Clark Memorial web site here.

The picture is of a rubbing from the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, D.C.

Science vs Creationism & Intelligent Design

The La Times published a piece entitled, “Inspiration for Doubters of Darwin” reporting that Pres. Bush made statements being taken by proponents of “intelligent design” as supportive of their argument. And, that might well be the intent of Pres. Bush.

Regardless of your position on the issue, creationism and intelligent design have no place in a public school. It is the responsibility of the faithful to teach the concepts to their children. It is the responsibility of the pubic schools to prepare students for the secular world. It is also not the place of public schools to proselytize the religion of secularism.

The teaching of science, of which biology and the theory of evolution is an essential part, is an important aspect of a foundational public education. The teaching of creationism or intelligent design is an important aspect of some religious groups’ training, but certainly not all. A requirement to keep a wall between government enterprises and religious enterprises is especially important in this arena. Otherwise, public supported enterprises run the danger of advocating the religious views of a majority religion and ignoring the views of some religious minority and the non-religious alike. Religion and its teaching is the responsibility of the religious and government. Government has no business sticking its nose into the teaching of religious concepts and should be prohibited from doing so. Otherwise, religious freedom is liable to be lost in this country and replaced by a mono-religious culture. Some would like that, no doubt. But, it is a bad idea. That sort of situation is exactly why many early settlers, of what was to become the U. S., fled the religious tyranny of Europe.