Friday, March 31, 2006

Out of commission today and tomorrow for funeral services. Have a great day!

Thursday, March 30, 2006

When You Think You're Having A Bad Day...

it could be a lot worse....think about dear friend and co-worker Abby Simpkins, her husband Bill and sons Tyler, Isaac and Wyatt, I know I will. Their 6 year old baby girl, Emma, died last Sunday when Bill was parallel parking his lifted Ford-350 Truck and accidentally ran over Emma. Their middle son Isaac saw this happen, the oldest son Tyler, 12, went to pick up Emma who was clinging to life, then Abby took her, she says she believed Emma died in her arms.

This is just an incredibly sad thing to happen to such a great family, Abby & Bill are phenomenal people. They moved in to their dream home in Anthem about 6 months ago and just last week finished the re-modeling of their home. As can be expected, they are devastated and need support. Abby & Bill were contacted during the middle of the night tha day after Emma died and were asked if they wanted to donate Emma's heart to a child in the vally here who needed a heart valve.....they agreed to do it. Any prayers for them are greatly appreciated, and an account has been established to help assist with funeral expenses:

NAME OF BANK: WELLS FARGO
NAME OF ACCT.: SIMPKINS FAMILY
ACCT. NO.: 2732251745

Emma Addison Simpkins, of Anthem, AZ passed away March 26, 2006 at the innocent age of 6. Emma was the baby of her family born in Troy, OH on February 7, 2000. Emma is survived by her loving parents, William and Abby, and brothers, Tyler, Isaac and Wyatt. Emma was the most beautiful baby princess anyone could ever know. She was brought up in a Christ filled, loving home and she knew Jesus as her savior. A visitation will be held on Thursday, March 30, 2006 from 6 PM to 8 PM at the Desert Hills Fellowship Church 34835 N. 7th St. Phoenix, AZ 85086 with a funeral service the following day at 10 AM at the same location. Memorial contributions to We Care in Anthem, Simpkins Family Account, Wells Fargo Bank account #2732251745.

Today in History.....March 30

On this day in …

* 1822, Florida became a United States territory

* 1842, Dr. Crawford W. Long of Jefferson, Ga., first used ether as an anesthetic during a minor operation

* 1867, U.S. Secretary of State William H. Seward reached agreement with Russia to purchase the territory of Alaska for $7.2 million, a deal roundly ridiculed as "Seward's Folly"

* 1870, Texas was readmitted to the Union

* 1945, the Soviet Union invaded Austria during World War II

* 1981, President Reagan was shot and seriously injured outside a Washington, D.C. hotel by John W. Hinckley Jr. Also wounded were White House press secretary James Brady, a Secret Service agent and a District of Columbia police officer

* 1995, Serbs and Croats signed a cease-fire to end their war in Croatia while Bosnian Muslims and Serbs continued to battle each other. ALSO: The Clinton administration announced it was lifting virtually all export controls on non-military products to China and the former Soviet bloc

* 1996, the space shuttle Atlantis narrowly avoided having to make an emergency landing when its cargo-bay doors wouldn't open at first to release built-up heat

* 2000, Yugoslav leader Slobodan Milosevic insisted that NATO attacks stop before he moved toward peace, declaring his forces ready to fight "to the very end." NATO answered with new resolve to wreck his military with a relentless air assault. ALSO: A jury in Portland, Ore., ordered Philip Morris to pay $81 million to the family of a man who died of lung cancer after smoking Marlboros for four decades. (The Supreme Court threw out the verdict in October 2003, saying it should be reviewed by lower courts to ensure it was not unconstitutionally excessive.)

* 2004, a "Palestinian" suicide bomber, a practitioner of that "religion of peace", wounded some 30 people outside a packed cafe in northern Israel, an attack the Islamic Jihad called "Palestine's gift to the heroic people of Iraq."

* 2005, under heavy protection, First Lady Laura Bush visited the capital of Afghanistan, where she talked with Afghan women freed from Taliban repression and urged greater rights. The Supreme Court ruled that federal law allows people 40 and

Wednesday, March 29, 2006

Washington D.C............We Have A Problem

And that problem has to do with immigration. Freedom Fighter at JoshuaPundit has an eye-opening post, go to "The Immigrant Song" post......catchy title for Led Zep fans as he notes.

The new bill that has sparked the recent marches in various cities throughout the USA, in short calls for clearing the way for millions of undocumented workers to seek U.S. citizenship without having to first leave the country.

There are an estimated 9-11 million here, logistically this would be a nightmare and can't be done properly. Trust me, I've dealt with the INS, this is a paperwork nightmare waiting to happen. Within the 9-11 million, you can bet there are quite a few bad guys......criminals. Another thing, this would be a nightmare for the Republican party, while not all are from Mexico, most are and almost all come from socialist forms of government....doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out who most will vote for.

Something does need to be done, most here know that this is a FUN topic in the Gringo household....The Mrs. being from Mexico and dealing with the unbelievably inept INS and all, but I am against having 9-11 million new citizens.

A few things bother me, one is cultural imperialism. Mexico is a beautiful country, we go there to experience your culture and the beautiful things Mexico has to offer, expanding it at a potential alarming rate will dilute it and, it is my belief that children should be educated in a english only environment.....this can only benefit students. Offer Spanish as an elective class, period.

Another thing, the notion that we stole the land from Mexico and that a reconquista is underway. Didn't Gen. Santa Ana agree to sell California and New Mexico and then renig on the deal? Look, during the 1800's the Mexican population of California and Texas was approx. 6,000, that's a lot of land for 6,000 people. And I believe these "lands" were given to Spain by the Pope and when Mexico gained independence form Spain, ownership then passed on to Mexico.

I would be for something such as if an illegal immigrant has been here for 5 years with steady employment and a clean record, then we can accomodate him/her. More on this later............hell I have a job and am busier than I need to be. :-)

Today in History.....March 29

On this day in …

* 1638, Swedish colonists settled in present-day Delaware

* 1847, victorious forces led by Gen. Winfield Scott occupied the city of Vera Cruz after Mexican defenders capitulated

* 1867, the British Parliament passed the North America Act to create the Dominion of Canada

* 1943, World War II meat, butter and cheese rationing began

* 1974, eight Ohio National Guardsmen were indicted on charges stemming from the shooting deaths of four students at Kent State University. (The guardsmen were later acquitted.)

* 1996, Congress passed, and President Clinton quickly signed, a 12th stopgap spending bill to avert a partial federal shutdown

* 2001, James Kopp, the fugitive wanted in the 1998 slaying of Dr.
Barnett Slepian, a Buffalo, N.Y., abortion provider, was captured in France. (Kopp was convicted in 2003 of killing Slepian and is serving a sentence of 25 years to life.)

* 2005, as Terri Schiavo entered her 12th full day without food or water, the Rev. Jesse Jackson prayed with her parents and joined conservatives in calling for Florida lawmakers to order her feeding tube reinserted

Tuesday, March 28, 2006

Sharon Stone Knows Best..... What A Pig

2 MORE items to add to the Sharon Stone Moonbat files:

#1. From Ace of Spades Hillary too sexy to become President Huh? Hillary Clinton? She can't be serious. She has about as much sex appeal as my hiking boot.

#2. A proponent of teenage oral sex. If I caught her talking to any of my kids like this, or any other kid for that matter, I'd try to have her arrested and/or find some female who would snap that bitch in half.

The Next Time......

......a lefty tells you that France and Frenchy people are more sophisticated, civilized, tolerant and have a higher intellect than most everyone else, show them this and go to Gateway Pundit for a nice round-up of the happenings in that paradise we all call France.

In case that first link doesn't work, there was a study done on IQ scores on countries in Europe....Germany wins, France comes in at 19.........that's 19th place in Europe! A normal IQ ranges from 85 - 110, Frenchies came in at an average of 94.

Beer vs wine (or whine).......I like the occasional glass of red, but beer wins.....of course!

This'll Put a Smile On Your Face

Some serious musicians here folks take a look. And yes, that's Steve Martin.

Crank it.

Today in History.....March 28

On this day in …

* 1834, the U.S. Senate voted to censure President Jackson for the removal of federal deposits from the Bank of the United States

* 1854, during the Crimean War, Britain and France declared war on Russia

* 1898, the Supreme Court ruled that a child born in the United States to Chinese immigrants was a U.S. citizen

* 1930, the names of the Turkish cities of Constantinople and Angora were changed to Istanbul and Ankara

* 1939, the Spanish Civil War ended as Madrid fell to the forces of Francisco Franco

* 1942, during World War II, British naval forces raided the Nazi-occupied French port of St. Nazaire

* 1996, Congress passed the line-item veto, giving the president power to cut government spending by scrapping specific programs.
ALSO: The space shuttle Atlantis' astronauts said goodbye to the crew of Russia's space station Mir and then flew off, leaving Shannon Lucid behind for a five-month stay in orbity

* 2001, the authors of a book on the Oklahoma City bombing revealed that during prison interviews, Timothy McVeigh had shown no remorse for what happened, and called the 19 children who died "collateral damage"

* 2005, the Colorado Supreme Court threw out the death penalty in a r ape-and-murder case because five of the jurors had consulted the Bible and quoted Scripture during deliberations

Monday, March 27, 2006

Krauthammer On Iran = Scary

Read it all here.

There is quite a bit of tension inside Iran, which is good. The younger, newer generation does see benefits of the western, capitalistic culture, hopefully this tension can boil over for an overthrow of the current President Ahmadinejad....if not, his timetable of Armegeddon in 2-3 years may not be that far-fetched of an idea.

This freak is insane.

Excerpt:

Depending on your own beliefs, Ahmadinejad is either mystical or deranged. In either case, he is exceedingly dangerous. And Iran is just the first. With infinitely accelerated exchanges of information helping develop whole new generations of scientists, extremist countries led by similarly extreme men will be in a position to acquire nuclear weaponry. If nothing is done, we face not proliferation but hyperproliferation. Not just one but many radical states will get weapons of mass extinction, and then so will the fanatical and suicidal terrorists who are their brothers and clients.


That will present the world with two futures. The first is Feynman's vision of human destruction on a scale never seen. The second, perhaps after one or two cities are lost with millions killed in a single day, is a radical abolition of liberal democracy as the species tries to maintain itself by reverting to strict authoritarianism--a self-imposed expulsion from the Eden of post-Enlightenment freedom.


A Very Sobering Month

A wonderful couple, family and friends, Bill and Abby Simpkins, lost their 6 year old daughter Emma yesterday in a tragic accident at their home. Bill was backing out his truck, he didn't see Emma and accidentally backed the truck over Emma, she died shortly thereafter. Just a tragic day.

What a beautiful little girl, bright, deep red hair and blue, almost violet eyes and a very girly girl personality. Hearts and prayers go out to you Bill and Abby and your 3 little boys as well.

I work with Abby who is in international finance, she's a great girl, a phenomenal mother and is liked and loved by everybody, this is just devastating news. God Bless you and your family Abby.

Today in History.....March 27

On this day in …

* 1513, Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon sighted Florida

* 1794, President Washington and Congress authorized creation of the U.S. Navy

* 1884, the first long-distance call. Branch managers of the American Bell Telephone Company in Boston called their counterparts in New York City

* 1912, in Washington, D.C., Helen Taft, wife of President William Taft, and the Viscountess Chinda, wife of the Japanese ambassador, plant two Yoshina cherry trees on the northern bank of the Potomac River, near the Jefferson Memorial. The event was held in celebration of a gift, by the Japanese government, of 3,020 cherry trees to the U.S. government

* 1917, the Seattle Metropolitans became the first U.S. team to win the Stanley Cup as they defeated the Montreal Canadiens

* 1952, Singin' in the Rain, considered by many to be the greatest Hollywood musical ever made, premieres at New York's Radio City Music Hall

* 1958, Nikita Khrushchev became Soviet premier in addition to First Secretary of the Communist Party

* 1964, the strongest earthquake in American history, measuring 8.4 on the Richter scale, slams southern Alaska, creating a deadly tsunami. Some 125 people were killed and thousands injured

* 1996, an Israeli court convicted Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin's confessed assassin of murder, then sentenced former law student Yigal Amir to life in prison

* 2002, President Bush signed a campaign finance reform bill into law.; ALSO, a "Palestinian" suicide bomber, a practitioner of that "religion of peace", 19 Israelis attending a Passover seder at a hotel in Netanya. More than 100 others were injured

Friday, March 24, 2006

From The Mrs........Support The Troops Cycle Ride

The Queen of Tequila (the town, not the drink) alerted me to this, it's a very cool way to support the troops (it's local, in Arizona), Cycle Ride for the Troops
Come and meet the real heroe's of today, sponsored by the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office. Now if you don't anything about our Sheriff Joe Arpaio, here's what he has insituted in Arizona's Maricopa County prison system:

All inmates wear pink underwear, wear the old black and white striped uniforms, no coffee, no cable tv, very limited access to magazines (no porn) created chain gangs to clean the highways, men and women (yes, they are chained up, I've seen them), green bologna sandwiches, created "Tent City" - instead of buildin new buildings, he put the prisoners in tents........a tough going in the Arizona summer, he says "jails ain't country clubs, if you don't like it here, don't commit a crime.....he's a beauty.

Need A Jack Bauer Fix?

Oh yah, what is today's date? heh heh

Can't get enough of Jack Baeuer and 24? All you have to do is go to Blogs 4 Bauer my friends.

A Joe Gringo sampling on Jack Bauer:

-Jack Bauer gives cigarettes cancer.

-Jack Bauer doesn't read books, he interrogates them until they give him the information he wants.

-Jack Bauer won the Indy 500 in a Ford Explorer

-Jack Bauer didn't really need a hacksaw.

-Jack Bauer knows where Atlantis is, because he sunk it.

-Deathly afraid of Jack Bauer, Minute Rice will fully cook itself in 15 seconds flat.

-All Video games now feature four difficulty levels: Easy, Normal, Hard, and Jack Bauer...No one has ever beaten the game on Jack Bauer.

-If there is a will, there is a way. And if that way is through Jack Bauer, you are f#$%^*.

-Jack Bauer does the Sunday New York Times Crossword Puzzle in ink.

-When Jack Bauer exercises, the machine gets a workout.

-Jack Bauer is never charged the $2 fee when using foreign ATM machines.

-Because of Jack Bauer, the Army switched their slogan from "Be All You Can Be" to "Army Of One".

Today in History.....March 24

On this day in …

* 1765, Britain enacted the Quartering Act, requiring American colonists to provide temporary housing to British soldiers

* 1883, long-distance telephone service was inaugurated between Chicago and New York

* 1934, President Roosevelt signed a bill granting future independence to the Philippines

* 1944, in occupied Rome, the Nazis, ym"sh, executed more than 300 civilians in reprisal for an attack by Italian partisans the day before that killed 32 German soldier

* 1976, the president of Argentina, Isabel Peron, was deposed by her country's military

* 1995, NASA astronaut Shannon Lucid transferred from the space shuttle Atlantis to the Russian space station Mir, beginning a five-month stay. ALSO: Stargazers across the country scanned the skies in hopes of seeing Hyakutake, the brightest comet to pass by the Earth in two decades. For the first time in 20 years, no British soldiers were patrolling the streets of Belfast, Northern Ireland

* 1999, NATO launched airstrikes against Yugoslavia, marking the first time in its 50-year existence that it had ever attacked a sovereign country

* 2001, three car bombs exploded almost simultaneously in southern Russia, killing 23 people in the worst act of terror to hit Russia outside warring Chechnya in months

* 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court denied an appeal from the parents of Terri Schiavo to have a feeding tube reinserted into the severely brain-damaged woman

Thursday, March 23, 2006

Tequila Is As Healthy As Wine

I knnnnnnnneeeeeeeewwwwwwww it!!!!!! ;-)

Tequila is considered healthy if used in moderation. Like wine it increases the good cholesterol levels in our blood while decreasing the bad cholesterols. This from Tequila Aficionado.........where else?

Been having problems lately linking.......maybe time for Joe Gringo to leave blogger and go dot.com! Tequila Aficionado is on my blogroll to right, and the boys at TA are about midway down!

A Move To Censure Jimmy Carter

Check this out ......the "Jimmy Carter Hall of Shame" is pretty telling. Our nation's worst President embraces terrorist's and terror organizations and has repeatedly criticized our Armed Forces......dude's got to retire before he embarrasses himself and more importantly our country any more.

Why Are There No People With Disabilities in North Korea?

Because infants born with physical disabilities are killed soon after birth that's why. This is from Red State:


SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea has no people with physical disabilities because they are killed almost as soon as they are born, a physician who defected from the communist state said on Wednesday.
Ri Kwang-chol, who fled to the South last year, told a forum of rights activists that the practice of killing newborns was widespread but denied he himself took part in it.
"There are no people with physical defects in North Korea," Ri told members of the New Right Union, which groups local activists and North Korean refugees.
He said babies born with physical disabilities were killed in infancy in hospitals or in homes and were quickly buried.
The practice is encouraged by the state, Ri said, as a way of purifying the masses and eliminating people who might be considered "different."


Is there much difference between aborting a fetus and killing a physically disabled infant? Pro-abortionists HAVE HAD TO SEE ultrasounds of babies in the womb, you see fingers, toes, hearbeat, facial characteristics, etc.

For lefties, I guess if you can't see 'em, they ain't real, another hypocritical view of the left. Is there a more narcissistic stance taken than abortion? It's not about the woman's own body......there's another one in the womb.

I know a guy pretty well, he's a Hillary, Barak Obama "worshipper", he asked me what's the difference between abortion and capital punishment.

That's easy......one is the purest form of innocence, while the other is guilty of the ultimate sin.

You should have seen the look on his face.

Wednesday, March 22, 2006

Okay...One More On "The Professional Griever"

I know this is a few days old, but I've been out of the loop check out this clip http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0JuTFtfmtEQ (just can't seem to link properly, copy & paste it in your browser) of Michelle Malkin interviewing Cindy Sheehan and discusses why she hasn't yet to this day, put a headstone on her son Casey's grave. The Griever doesn't know she is being interviewed by Michelle, and when she finds out, it is priceless. And check out the end of this clip, this Fruit of the Loop poster boy defines what the left is all about.

Charlie Sheen..... Have Another Bong Hit

Conspiracy Theory 101.

Another Hollywood dunce opens his mouth and shows his wit. This is from John Hawkins at http://www.rightwingnews.com/ (can't properly link it) I guess sobriety doesn't sit well with Chuckie Sheen.........but.....I guess if your dad is Martin Sheen, being a bozo must run in the family genes. I know next to nothing about Emilio Estevez, at least he didn't take on the Sheen name.

Having the ability to speak backwards pretty darn fast gets me to thinking about stuff like this....Emilio Estevez' first name backwards is "Oilime"....as in inverted lime oil. :-)


Here is what mush brain had to say about the 9/11 attacks in an interview with Alex Jones:

"We're not the conspiracy theorists on this particular issue," said Sheen.

"It seems to me like 19 amateurs with box cutters taking over four commercial airliners and hitting 75% of their targets, that feels like a conspiracy theory. It raises a lot of questions."

Sheen described the climate of acceptance for serious discussion about 9/11 as being far more fertile than it was a couple of years ago.

"It feels like from the people I talk to in and around my circles, it seems like the worm is turning." (Hawkins note: See? To Sheen, bad poll numbers for Bush means "the worm is turning," which means more people may buy into his lunatic conspiracy theories.)

Sheen described his immediate skepticism regarding the official reason for the collapse of the twin towers and building 7 on the day of 9/11.

"I was up early and we were gonna do a pre-shoot on Spin City, the show I used to do, I was watching the news and the north tower was burning. I saw the south tower hit live, that famous wide shot where it disappears behind the building and then we see the tremendous fireball."

"There was a feeling, it just didn't look any commercial jetliner I've flown on any time in my life and then when the buildings came down later on that day I said to my brother 'call me insane, but did it sorta look like those buildings came down in a controlled demolition'?"

...Sheen outlined his disbelief that the official story of what happened at the Pentagon matched the physical evidence.

"Show us this incredible maneuvering, just show it to us. Just show us how this particular plane pulled off these maneuvers. 270 degree turn at 500 miles and hour descending 7,000 feet in two and a half minutes, skimming across treetops the last 500 meters."

...Sheen said that "September 11 wasn't the Zapruder film, it was the Zapruder film festival," and that the inquiry had to be, "headed, if this is possible, by some neutral investigative committee. What if we used retired political foreign nationals? What if we used experts that don't have any ties whatsoever to this administration?"

"It is up to us to reveal the truth. It is up to us because we owe it to the families, we owe it to the victims. We owe it to everybody's life who was drastically altered, horrifically that day and forever. We owe it to them to uncover what happened."

Bird Flu.....Interesting Numbers

Although it has not yet been discovered that the Avian bird flu can be transmitted from human to human, it is from birds to different animals. The Center for Disease Control reports that in the 1960's, there about 16 million chickens in China. In 2006, there is an estimated 20 Billion chickens in China, and mostly in open-air chicken farms.

All indications are that the bird flu is coming to America, good news is that most chickens here are in closed environments, bad news if you're living in China.

This was from Bill Bennett's morning show over 1 week....looking for a transcript.

Back in the Game......Check Out These #'s

Glenn Reynolds at InstaPundit has this piece today:

WAR AND PEACE: Some interesting numbers:

While every lost serviceman and servicewoman is certainly tragic and should be mourned, the actual statistics tell quite a different tale from the MSM and Democratic doom-and-gloom outlook. Comparing the numbers of lost US military personnel to past years, and past presidential terms, may even be a shock to supporters of the war.
Take a look at the actual US Military Casualty figures since 1980. If you do the math, you wil find quite a few surpises. First of all, let's compare numbers of US Military personnel that died during the first term of the last four presidents.

George W. Bush . . . . . 5187 (2001-2004)
Bill Clinton . . . . . . . . . 4302 (1993-1996)
George H.W. Bush . . . . 6223 (1989-1992)
Ronald Reagan . . . . . . 9163 (1981-1984)

Even during the (per MSM) utopic peacetime of Bill Clinton's term, we lost 4302 service personnel. H.W. Bush and Reagan actually lost significantly more personnel while never fighting an extensive war, much less a simulaltaneous war on two theaters (Iraq and Afghanistan). Even the dovish Carter lost more people duing his last year in office, in 1980 lost 2392, than W. has lost in any single year of his presidency. (2005 figures are not available but I would wager the numbers would be slightly higher than 2004.)

In 2004, more soldiers died outside of Iraq and Afghanistan than died inside these two war zones (900 in these zones, 987 outside these zones). The reason is that there are usually a fair number that die every year in training accidents, as well as a small number of illness and suicide. Yet the MSM would make you think that US soldiers are dying at a high number in these zones, and at a significantly higher number than in past years or under past presidents. This is all simply outright lies and distortion.

You'd think this would get more attention.

UPDATE: John Kluge emails:

The guy at red state gets it about half right on military deaths. He is absolutely right that soldiers die in accidents and of natural causes when they are in garrison. What he doesn’t take into account is that the military was much larger under Carter, Reagan and Bush I than it has been under Clinton or Bush II. Clinton and Bush II are really the only two comparable numbers. Looking at those numbers, it appears that the Iraq, Afghanistan wars have resulted in an increase of 885 dead over what could have been expected through normal garrison operations in Bush II’s first term. That is not too bad when you consider that Bush has liberated two countries and fought a prolonged insurgency in both and that America lost over 1,000 dead in taking Vichy French North Africa in 1942 (that was before we even so much as fired a shot at the Germans).

Good point.

Today in History.....March 22

On this day in …

* 1457, Gutenberg Bible became the first printed book

* 1733, Joseph Priestly invents carbonated water (seltzer)

* 1765, Britain enacted the Stamp Act to raise money from the American colonies. (The Act was repealed the following year.)

* 1790, Thomas Jefferson becomes the first US Secretary of State

* 1820, U.S. naval hero Stephen Decatur was killed in a duel with Commodore James Barron near Washington

* 1874, Young Men's Hebrew Association organizes in NYC

* 1882, Congress outlawed polygamy

* 1903, Niagara Falls runs out of water because of a drought

* 1914, world's first airline, St. Petersburg Tampa Airboat Line, begins service

* 1933, during Prohibition, President Roosevelt signed a measure to make wine and beer containing up to 3.2 percent alcohol legal

* 1946, first US rocket to leave the Earth's atmosphere (50 miles
up) ALSO: the British mandate in Transjordan came to an end

* 1954, first shopping mall opens (Southfield, Michigan)

* 1972, Congress sent the proposed Equal Rights Amendment to the Constitution to the states for ratification. (It fell three states short of the 38 needed for approval.)

* 1978, Karl Wallenda, the 73-year-old patriarch of "The Flying Wallendas" high-wire act, fell to his death while attempting to walk a cable strung between two hotels in San Juan, Puerto Rico

* 1996, the shuttle Atlantis carrying astronaut Shannon Lucid to a rendezvous with the Russian space station Mir, blasted off from Cape Canaveral, Fla.

* 2005, Terri Schiavo's parents begged a federal appeals court to order the severely brain-damaged woman's feeding tube reinserted after their emergency request was turned down by a federal judge in Tampa, Fla. ALSO: A woman claimed to have found a fingertip while eating Wendy's chili at a restaurant in San Jose, Calif., costing the fast-food chain millions in lost sales before she admitted it was a hoax.

Tuesday, March 21, 2006

A Goodbye, But Never Forgotten

Beautiful ceremony for Bill Houser, he's gone but never forgotten. That was the hardest funeral service to attend. Give your loved ones a hug today, tomorrow and when appropriate.......you never know when it is your time!

One last post on Billy...... Bill.....I will strive to raise by boys to have the closeness, the trust and great relationship as you and Andy had. Good bye my friend.

Monday, March 20, 2006

One Great Guy

Out of respect for our friend, I will have nothing to post until after Bill's funeral which is Tuesday.

William (Billy Boy) L. Houser passed away March 16, 2005.

He was born on May 9, 1953 in Spirit Lake, Iowa. Bill is survived by his wife and best friend of 32 years, Linda L. Houser. Also surviving Bill are his two wonderful children, Stephanie and Andrew Houser, as well as his lovely mother, LeVern Mitchell. Bill is also survived by his step sisters and brothers in law, Janet and Neil Murphy, Jodi and Done Roese and Gelene and Fred Jonasz. Additionally, there are numerous nieces and nephews who share loving memories of Bill. Linda's brothers, Billy and Bob Sampson, as well as Bill's special angel, Brenda Sampson, remember him with love and devotion. Bill was such a special man in so many ways. He was a devoted family man and the best friend anyone could ever hope to have. It would take several pages to name all of his friends. He loved golf and shared it with his son, his favorite partner. He was President, CEO and owner of Arizona Top Seed, a very successful tennis/basketball resurfacing company. Bill and Linda are extremely supportive of the community through their contributions to the United Way supporting Camp Sunrise for Kids with Cancer. Bill will always be remembered for his special sense of humor and amazing spontaneous laugh that those around him found contagious. No one was more loved than Bill Houser. A Memorial service will be held from 6-8PM on Monday, 3/20/06 at Hansen Desert Hills Chapel, 6500 E. Bell Road, Scottsdale. Funeral services will be held at 11AM on 3/21/06 at St. Joan of Arc, 3801 E. Greenway. Arrangements entrusted to Hansen Desert Hill Mortuary, 480-991-5800. Though Bill died suddenly from other causes, the family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the American Cancer Society, www.cancer.org.

Friday, March 17, 2006

Today Is A Very Sad Day

Our friend, Bill Houser, died yesterday from a massive heart attack. Bill was 53 years old and is survived by his wife Linda, son Andy and daughter Stephanie.

Bill was and will always be remembered as a super guy, a great husband, a great father and one heck of competitor and fun guy on the golf course. It is suggested by his dear friend, Mike Vinson, that this year's 25th Annual Memorial Day Golf Tournament that we put on and which he was an integral part of, be dedicated to our friend Bill Houser.

Rest in Peace Billy. God Bless You.


Augusta National Golf Club, Hole #10 (click to enlarge)

Thursday, March 16, 2006

Off to a function. With the release of the Iraq documents, Friday should be an interesting day. I wonder what Hillary, John F'n Kerry, Slow Joe, Dick Durbin, Diane & Barbara and the rest are thinking??? :-)

I've got a plate of crow ready for them.

NCAA Tourney Update

Go Here.
Day 1, Joe Gringo is 13 for 16, not bad.

Bush Fein(s)gold With Russ Feingold

Captain Ed at Captain's Quarters had this to say:

Just a week ago, George Bush appeared to be on the political ropes. Thanks to conservative disappointment, his approval ratings had sunk to the dreadful level of the mid-30s, and his own party had administered a legislative rebuke on a national-security matter. The Democrats had the rare opportunity of having the GOP at war with itself rolling into the midterm elections and for the first time had considered the possibility of retaking control of the House after twelve years of minority status.

And then along came Russ Feingold

...and this

With his attack on the President and his foolish censure motion, Feingold has changed the tone of the midterms single-handedly.

...and this

The GOP could not ask for a better weapon against the Democrats. This will ignite the base, which had been mightily disappointed in Bush for his spending and his lack of focus on border security

...and finally this

Feingold has the Democrats boxed in. If they proceed with censures and impeachment talk, they lose in November, and lose big. If they back off, they will lose their activist base, which has waited for years to push them into this position. Karl Rove and the Republican team must be breathing huge sighs of relief. Who knew the cavalry would appear in the form of Feingold to rescue the Republican midterms?

VDH on the Ports.....Postmortem

With so many conservative intellectuals taking opposing views on the ports issue (liberal as well), this issue continues to be puzzling. I believe in the end we will need help from some Muslim faction to eradicate radical Islam, however all it takes is one cargo full of nukes entering the US and we've got one hell of a mess on our hands.

The folks over at Democracy Frontline provide such in-depth in sight into the Muslim world, that I've come to the conclusion that once a Muslim, always a Muslim, come hell or high water. The UAE is definitely motivated by money, I think all it would take is some $$ from a terror organization/state to the UAE and they could make sure that a nuke could slip through on a ship. Yet again if they let that happen and if some nuke went off here in the states, wouldn't their business come to a halt and lose money?

Here's Victor Davis Hanson's article and here's an excerpt that helps muddy up the picture for me :

.....the Dubai port deal shows how at odds are American perceptions and reality. For the last half-century, we have been living in a complex interconnected world of mutual reliance. Soon we will import more food than we grow. We already burn more oil than we pump. For years we have bought more than we export, and we borrow far more than we lend. To justify these precarious dependencies, America assures foreign business leaders, investors and lenders that our markets remain open and immune to the distortions of xenophobia and provincialism.

Americans may not like that devil's bargain, but it was made long ago and, for better or worse, we are long past being an agrarian republic. The resulting singular affluence of the American consumer derives from just these tradeoffs in our autonomy — and the trust we receive from those who loan and sell us things we cannot immediately pay for. So rejecting the Dubai port deal is not only hypocritical, but in the end dumb.

That Hollywood Ba-Dumb-A-Dumb

Considering who we're dealing with, this really isn't news, but I just had to comment on what a dope Jessica Simpson is.

Let's see, if you receive an invitation to meet with the President of the United States and attend a major Republican fund raiser, you take it. Jessica Simpson, an apparent Bush and Republican supporter decided she would turn down this invitation because she felt it might conflict with a charity she supports. Believe me, it's not that they need her presence at these functions, far from it, she's just a twit for declining. The Republican party is full of cash, I'm sure some in the party may have benefitted her charity.

I have a buddy, Billy Marko, who is about as right wing as it gets, and he and his wife had an invitation to go the White House to meet with Pres. Bill Clinton....he took it (with some grumblings of course).

Let the dumb blonde jokes continue.

New Feature....Word of the Day

After reading Michelle Malkin's blog today I decided to do this. Her post The Falling Man Revisited was very touching, here using a word I never heard of before, she noted that the below photo is one of the most famous photograph's in human history......and she's right. So this inspired me to do this....hey it can't hurt! :-) Here's the word:

Cenotaph
a monument honoring a dead person whose remains lie elsewhere or a monument built to honor soldiers who died in a war.







Today in History.....March 16

On this day in …

* 1802, Congress authorized the establishment of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y.

* 1915, the Federal Trade Commission was organized

* 1935, Adolf Hitler, ym"sh, scrapped the Treaty of Versailles

* 1945, during World War II, Iwo Jima was declared secured by the Allies

* 1978, Italian politician Aldo Moro was kidnapped by left-wing urban guerrillas, who later murdered him

* 1984, William Buckley, the CIA station chief in Beirut, was kidnapped by gunmen, practitioners of that "religion of peace"; he died in captivity

* 1985, Terry Anderson, chief Middle East correspondent for The Associated Press, was abducted in Beirut by practitioners of that "religion of peace"; he was released in December 1991

* 1994, figure skater Tonya Harding pleaded guilty in Portland, Ore., to conspiracy to hinder prosecution for covering up the attack on rival Nancy Kerrigan, avoiding jail but drawing a $100,000 fine.

* 1996, for the first time, ordinary citizens were allowed inside the central archives of the former East German secret police, the hated Stasi security agency

* 1999, the Dow Jones industrial average briefly topped the 10,000 level, reaching a high of 10,001.78 before retreating. ALSO: The entire 20-member European Commission resigned following publication of a critical report on sloppy management and cronyism.

* 2005, a jury in Los Angeles acquitted actor Robert Blake of murder in the shooting death of his wife, Bonny Lee Bakley, four years earlier. (A civil court jury later ordered Blake to pay $30 million to Bakley's four children; Blake has since filed for bankruptcy.)
ALSO: A judge in Redwood City, Calif., sent Scott Peterson to death row for the slaying of his pregnant wife, Laci. Norway's Robert Sorlie won his second Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in one of the closest races in years

Wednesday, March 15, 2006

The Dixie Bitches

They have a new album out.....don't buy it.

I have nothing against musical acts or actors who hold the liberal agenda, I like U2, Robert DeNiro, et al, and can listen and watch these people perform, but when you use your career as a platform to push your agenda, you better be ready to suffer the consequences if things come back to bite you. That's the case with the Dixie Chicks, they bashed George W. Bush and the Republican party and are crying because their audience shunned them for it. Typical liberal, they think they are too high and mighty and don't take responsibility for their own actions.

They should change their name from the Dixie Chicks to The Narcissistic Bitches.

Partial lyrics to their new song titled "Not Ready to Make Nice":

I’m not ready to make nice
I’m not ready to back down
I’m still mad as hell andI don’t have time to go round and round and round
It’s too late to make it right
I probably wouldn’t if I could
‘Cause I’m mad as hell
Can’t bring myself to do what it is you think I should
Forgive, sounds goodForget,

I’m not sure I could
They say time heals everything
But I’m still waiting

Waiting....waiting for what? I think the title of the song is what your audience is saying.....the song is average at best, go take a hike chicks, hope your album lays an egg.

Every Thang's Gonna Be All White!!!


I still get a kick out this. If you're not familiar with this story, back in 2001, the students at the University of Northern Colorado named their intramural basketball team "The Fighting Whities". The team comprised of American Indians, Hispanics and white guys and they did this as a satiracal commentary on a local high school's team American Indian mascot.

The team chose the name after it couldn't persuade a nearby school to abandon its nickname, the Fightin' Reds, and the American Indian caricature on the team logo.

Pretty funny, if you want to buy something from them, go here.

The Conservative Case Against McCain - 2008

John Hawkins at Right Wing News points out why John McCain would be a poor choice as the Republican nominee for POTUS in 2008, the topics he touches on are:

-The Age Issue
-How Electable Is McCain Really?
-What's Wrong With Actually Having A Loyal Republican As The Republican Nominee?
-How Can You Be Pro-Life And Pro-Roe v. Wade At The Same Time?
-Kyoto By Any Other Name Would Still Smell As Rotten
-McCain Vs. The Bush Tax Cuts
-McCain May Not Like Bush's Tax Cuts, But He Loves Illegal Immigration
-The Gang-Of-14 Disaster
-The McCain-Feingold Campaign Finance Reform Debacle

Excerpt:

John McCain's signature piece of legislation is the McCain-Feingold Campaign Finance Reform Bill which is one of the worst pieces of legislation to make it through Congress in the last decade. The idea behind this nightmarish piece of legislation, which was a failure on every level, was that it was going to, "take the money out of politics." Well, not only did McCain-Feingold fail to, "take the money out of politics," more money was spent than ever in the 2004 elections. Moreover, the bill unconstitutionally curbed free speech, protected incumbents, gave a fund raising edge to the Democrats, and opened up the door to regulating bloggers. If McCain says that he'll do for America what he did for campaign finance reform, it should be taken as a threat.

Aren't you tired of the "maverick" label? He is anything but.


Today in History.....March 15

On this day in …

* 1493, Christopher Columbus returned to Spain, concluding his first voyage to the Western Hemisphere

* 1867, Michigan becomes first state to tax property to support a university

* 1892, first escalator patented by inventor Jesse W. Reno

* 1913, Cleveland establishes first small claims court. ALSO:
President Wilson held the first open presidential news conference

* 1919, the American Legion was founded in Paris

* 1922, first southern radio station (WSB, Atlanta) begins broadcasting

* 1937, first blood bank forms (Chicago)

* 1944, during World War II, Allied bombers again raided German-held Monte Cassino

* 1964, actress Elizabeth Taylor married actor Richard Burton in Montreal; it was her fifth marriage, his second

* 1977, the U.S. House of Representatives began a 90-day test to determine the feasibility of showing its sessions on television

* 1996, the Liggett Group agreed to repay more than $10 million in Medicaid bills for treatment of smokers, settling lawsuits with five states. (The settlement came two days after Liggett, the nation's fifth-largest tobacco company, made history by settling a private class-action lawsuit alleging cigarette makers manipulated nicotine to hook smokers.)

* 2001, Federal authorities confirmed that remains found on a Texas ranch were those of missing atheist leader Madalyn Murray O'Hair and two of her relatives. (David Waters, the key suspect in the slayings, was sentenced to 20 years in prison on a federal extortion charge in connection with the case.) ALSO: Chechens hijacked a Russian plane after it left Turkey and forced it to land in Saudi Arabia. (Saudi special forces stormed the plane the following day; a flight attendant, a passenger and a hijacker were killed.)

* 2005, former WorldCom chief Bernard Ebbers was convicted in New York of engineering the largest corporate fraud in U.S. history. (He was later sentenced to 25 years in prison.)

Tuesday, March 14, 2006

Iraq vs Vietnam

These wars are not comparable, differences being:

The Enemy
Vietnam - we confronted a nation with a military ov over 1 million men, hardened by previous wars with the Japanese, French and South Vietnamese and they had a communist agenda.

Iraq - No real nation to speak of, no organized army or leader, just a bunch of terrorists with car bombs and IED's.

The Enemy's Allies
Vietnam - North Vietnamese received unlimited support from 2 huge superpowers, the Soviet Union and China.

Iraq - These terrorists receive relatively no government support, we know it's there (Syria, Iran) but none that make that public.

Our Army
Vietnam - Our military was made up from the draft.

Iraq - Everyone fighting in Iraq enlisted voluntarily.....please tell that to "The Professional Griever", Cindy Sheehan.

Deaths
Vietnam - Over 58,000 deaths in Vietnam

Iraq - just over 2,000.......and less than what we endured on Sept. 11 2001

The Media
Vietnam - There were only TV networks that carried the news and they generally downplayed any sign of success/progress....I was a bit young but from what info I gathered, I believe this to be true.

Iraq - The MSM definitely has an agenda...anti-war. At least now we have Fox News, talk radio and the blogosphere! Thank God!

Politics
Vietnam - The Democrats contolled the power in Washington, had control of both houses and Congress, and we all remember what happened to their "peace candidate" George McGovern in the 1972 elections, his "Come Home, America" slogan got him creamed in the '72 Presidential elections, losing 49 of 50 states. There were a series of votes calling for the cutting off of the military which served to undermine our military.

Iraq - Republicans in control and no resolution to withdraw, at least nothing more than 20% of either the house of Congress.

Scandal
Vietnam - Watergate, without it, Nixon and the Republicans probaly would prevented the Democrats from winning lop-sided victories in the House and Senate.

Iraq - Well, you can't saythe Democrats haven't tried to stir up the pot here....everything from Valeri Plame, to Tom Delay to Dick Cheney hunting for Halliburton. ;-)

What's At Stake
Vietnam - Vietnam only wanted to control Vietnam, not send in their armies into the US, plus we had to stand up to the Soviet Union, couldn't back down from them.

Iraq - They brought their fight into our homeland and continue to from terrorist cells and call for the blood and destruction of our country.

Even though the general public did not like the war in Vietnam, the last thing I believe they wanted was for us to surrender. Today there is a similar mood, not liking the war (who does) ad it is reported that less than 20% want withdrawal. It's going to take a bit longer, but the last thing we need to do is withdraw our troops, we're winning and close to having Iraqi control in the streets. We need to learn from past mistakes.


She Did It....

The Mrs. passed her U.S. citizenship test yesterday and will officially become a U.S. citizen in about 5-6 weeks!

Her best friend and her friend passed their test 2 weeks ago as well, this will be one grand fiesta! ¡Felicidades!

Today in History.....March 14

On this day in …

* 1997, Joe Gringo's son #1 was born, Happy Birthday!

* 1743, the first recorded town meeting in America was held, at Faneuil Hall in Boston

* 1794, Eli Whitney received a patent for his cotton gin, an invention that revolutionized America's cotton industry

* 1900, Congress ratified the Gold Standard Act

* 1923, President Harding became the first chief executive to file an income tax report

* 1939, the republic of Czechoslovakia was dissolved, opening the way for Nazi, ym"sh, occupation

* 1951, during the Korean War, United Nations forces recaptured Seoul

* 1964, a jury in Dallas found Jack Ruby guilty of murdering Lee Harvey Oswald, the accused assassin of President Kennedy

* 1965, Israel's cabinet formally approved establishment of diplomatic relations with West Germany

* 1991, a British court reversed the convictions of the "Birmingham Six," who had spent 16 years in prison for an Irish Republican Army bombing, and ordered them released

* 1996, during a visit to Israel, President Clinton pledged $100 million to the fight against terrorism

* 2001, inspectors tightened U.S. defenses against foot-and-mouth disease a day after a case was confirmed in France

* 2005, a judge in San Francisco ruled that California's ban on gay "marriage" was unconstitutional. China's parliament enacted a law authorizing force to stop rival Taiwan from pursuing formal independence

Monday, March 13, 2006

A Punk Gets Punked By Buzz Aldrin

From The Officer's Club

Check out what happens when you call Buzz Aldrin a "coward and a liar." Way to humiliate this punk Buzz!

Big Day......

....for the Mrs.

Today is the day she gets tested for her US citizenship! You want to see a screwed up part of the gov't, check out the INS.....anyway after many years of BS paperwork, today is the day! Ceremony should be in about 1-2 months. Good Luck to the Queen of Tequila! .......the town, not the drink :-)

PS - with this going on, today will be a light day.

Not Sure Why...

....but my site was down since around midnight last friday, did some finagling this morning to get her going this morning. Was it the vast left wing conspiracy? :-)

Today in History.....March 13

On this day in …

* 1781, the planet Uranus was discovered by Sir William Herschel

* 1868, the impeachment trial of President Andrew Johnson began in the U.S. Senate.

* 1884, Standard Time was adopted throughout the United States

* 1925, a law went into effect in Tennessee prohibiting the teaching of evolution

* 1933, banks began to reopen after a "holiday" declared by President Roosevelt

* 1964, 38 residents of a Queens, N.Y., neighborhood failed to respond to the cries of Catherine "Kitty" Genovese, 28, as she was being stabbed to death

* 1969, the Apollo 9 astronauts splashed down, ending a mission that included the successful testing of the Lunar Module

* 1980, Ford Motor Chairman Henry Ford II announced he was stepping down. ALSO: 1980, a jury in Winamac, Ind., found Ford Motor Co.

innocent of reckless homicide in the fiery deaths of three young women riding in a Ford Pinto

* 1996, world leaders, including President Clinton, held a summit in Sharm El-Sheik, Egypt, where they vowed unequivocal support for the Mideast peace process

* 2001, Ahmed Ressam, an Algerian practitioner of that "religion of peace" who was arrested with a carload of explosives just before New Year's Eve 1999, went on trial in Los Angeles on charges of plotting to bomb Seattle and other U.S. cities during the millennium celebrations. (He was convicted of terrorism the following month.).
ALSO: France announced its first case of foot-and-mouth disease, prompting the U.S. Department of Agriculture to suspend imports of livestock and fresh meat from the European Union

Friday, March 10, 2006

Castro Punked


A fan held up a sign during the World Baseball Classic
today that read "Down with Fidel" that was viewd to an television audience of 10 million +, including Cuba!

Good for him! Way to go 'bro!

Here's the story from Breitbart

New Read on Joe Gringo's Blogroll

Welcome to Elmer's Brother, might be one of the better photo's out there, check him out.

The Magnificent VDH

My choice for Secretary of State in 2008, Victor Davis Hanson on those who apparently supported the war but now oppose the peace. Here's the article and here's a great excerpt:

..the latest criticism is more troubling, since it often comes from the “my perfect war, your lousy peace” school that, for some reason, never critiques the three-week removal of Saddam Hussein. Instead, it defends its evolving opposition to the war by advancing particular pet theories of reconstruction that were never followed. Rarely do we hear that most postbellum efforts are long, messy, and necessary, much less that the essence of war is lapse and tragedy, with victory going only to those who in the end err the least and endure. Anyone back in the United States can post facto write up a list of what ought to have been done in Iraq amid the heat and fire; but they at least need to factor in the conditions at the time that led the supposedly less bright on the ground not to anticipate their own inspired wisdom from afar.

Welcome To MartyrdomLand, Hamas For Kids

That's real nice, breeding murderers. Amnesty International, where are you? This article from Front Page Mag "Hamas Bids Children to Die.

Hamas has a special web site for children, al-fateh.net, where violence is glorified and death for Allah is labelled a "victory." Al-Fateh means 'The Conqueror.' The Shahada deaths of terrorists during attacks against Israel are presented to children as a time of celebration. A mother is quoted on the website as saying that when she heard that her son had become a shahid (martyr), she bought dates, candies and coffee to give out.

The website features a page entitled 'Stories of the Shahids.' The current story honors Hamas suicide terrorist Naseem Ja'abari who killed 16 people in a bus bombing in Beersheba on August 31, 2004.
The drawing of the religious girl participating in the violence (at right) appears both on the homepage as well as a second page with a poem glorifying fighting, Jihad, and Shahada (Death for Allah). Israel is referred to as "thief" and "invader," and its defeat in battle is both desired and anticipated.
Following are translations of the poem and excerpts from 'Stories of the Shahids.'
We rose up
We rose up against the thievesWe rose up against [them], and we shall never surrender
We will rise up in determination, like our ancestorsWe will sacrifice, sacrifice our livesOur father's bidding has taught usThat Jihad is the eternal pathAnd that the oppressors will be defeated...
We have become devoted and we will never surrenderOne day we will defeat all the invadersWe bless and honor the proudThe blood of the shahid has taught us That Shahada is a new lifeO Allah, bless the steps of the rebelsIndeed, Shahada is an open victory[Al-Fateh website, March 7, 2006]

Stories of the Shahids

"...Our shahid today is the the Shahada-seeker, the hero Naseem Al-Ja'abari."
Naseem's mother tells of her son's merits and says that when she heard of his terrorist action, she took the money he had left her and "went to buy dates and candies for the people who came to congratulate [us]." She goes on to tell how she heard her son commited the suicide bombing. Finally, she sends her greetings to all those people who want to become shahids.
Naseem's mother also gloats that "[in light] of the success of the heroic attack in Beersheba, the Zionist Secret Service admitted they failed in eliminating the Resistance [a Palestinian euphemism for terror], its roots and infrastructure".[Al-Fateh website, March 7, 2006]

This on a website for children.

Man Fruit Braise The North Almond....Huh?

Before I get to that, I heard they are going to do a movie on that Fire Chief in Gilbert, AZ who got caught trying to make it with a sheep, movie is to be titled "Broke Back Mutton"., that from local radio show 102.5 KNIX, the Tim & Willy show.

Okay, now check this out, Go here to view a translated Chinese to English menu at a Chinese Restaurant.....it's hilarious.

I'll take the Cowboy Leg Beautiful Pole with the Carbon Burns Fresh Particularly Must Silk and a little bit of the Salty Egg King Steams the Vegetable Sponge.

Too funny. Thanks to Ace of Spades for this one.

Today in History.....March 10

On this day in …

* 1964, Gringo Grande, Joe Gringo's brother, was born. Grande as in Big Boy, the folks bred the boys large - 6'3" 220lbs, 6'4" 240 lbs, 6'3" 250 lbs, 6'5" 235 (yours truly)

* 1785, Thomas Jefferson was appointed minister to France, succeeding Benjamin Franklin

* 1848, the Senate ratified the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, ending the war with Mexico

* 1864, Ulysses S. Grant became commander of the Union armies in the Civil War

* 1876, the first successful voice transmission over Alexander Graham Bell's telephone took place in Boston as his assistant heard Bell say, "Mr. Watson, come here. I want you."

* 1949, Nazi wartime broadcaster Mildred E. Gillars, also known as "Axis Sally," was convicted in Washington, D.C., of treason. (She served 12 years in prison.)

* 1969, James Earl Ray pleaded guilty in Memphis, Tenn., to the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. (Ray later repudiated that plea, maintaining his innocence until his death.)

* 1980, "Scarsdale Diet" author Dr. Herman Tarnower was shot to death in Purchase, N.Y. (Jean Harris, convicted of murder, served nearly 12 years in prison before being released in January 1993.)

* 1985, Konstantin U. Chernenko, Soviet leader for just 13 months, died at age 73

* 1996, Hezbollah terrorists, practitioners of that "religion of peace", launched a wave of bomb and rocket attacks on Israeli troops in south Lebanon. Secretary of State Warren Christopher, accusing China of "reckless" provocations against Taiwan, said on NBC that U.S. warships would move closer to Taiwan

* 2001, President Bush told Americans in his Saturday radio address that he thought support for tax relief was building, while opening the door to considering a different sort of cut than what he had proposed and Democrats deplored

* 2005, Lebanon's president reappointed staunchly pro-Syrian politician Omar Karami as prime minister. ALSO: Former President Clinton underwent surgery in New York to remove scar tissue and fluid from his chest. Michael Jackson, clad in pajamas and walking gingerly, arrived one hour late to trial after the judge threatened to have him arrested him for tardiness; a back injury was blamed.

Thursday, March 09, 2006

Bush 2 Steps Ahead Of The Game?

Within the last hour, the UAE has just decided to turn over the management of the ports to a US entity.....now wouldn't that be just grand if it were Halliburton?

Something to think about.....did Bush know this all along? I mean he was vehemently for the UAE to operate the ports, saying he would veto any bill to deny the UAE from operating the ports. Is it possible that he figured there would be a huge outcry against this from happening, causing heated debates from all sides, and then in turn working a deal for the Arabs to cave in and let the US take control?

This would confirm that Bush is more than willing to work with the Arab world and in the end we win.....again.



Or......now does the UAE help set up terrorists camps in the Middle East because they feel the US does not want to do business with them? Or is this a non-story?

More On (pun intended) The Professional Griever...

....I give her WAY too much pub....anyway, get ready to get sick. This is from Steve Janke (hat tip: Right Wing Rocker) Below is a mock grave site she mad for her son Casey, especially equipped with photo and boots of course!

And below, here she is with her friends.....the MSM


And below is her son's REAL grave site. It is unmarked, no headstone 18 months after he died in combat. Guess what, she received a $250,000 settlement from her son's life insurance policy, bought herself a brand spanking new VW Beeetle (what else?), yet she can't honor her son with headstone. Why would Cindy Sheehan beg off completing this task? The monument can only be placed with her approval, but she hasn't found the time to do it, or even pay for it. This is causing pain and anguish for a family she claims to "adore above all things".


(click to enlarge)

Hugo Chavez, Man For The People? Not Quite


The next time you hear lefties promote communism, tell them this......compared to last year, Venezuela’s score this year has worsened in the Index of Economic Freedom Index for 2006 published by The Heritage Foundation and The Wall Street Journal. It is ranked as one of the 12 “most repressed” economies in the world, with its rating dropping from 4.09 to 4.16.
Chávez’ country ranked 152 out of the 157 country’s analyzed, below Cuba and Haiti. The only countries with a worse rating are Libya, Zimbabwe, Burma, Iran, and North Korea.

  • Here's the article,
  • and here's an excerpt:

    The reason why this study is important is because, according to monitoring by The Heritage Foundation, it has been shown that the greater a country’s economic freedom, the greater its economic growth and the greater the improvement in the standard of living of its citizens.

    Sports Biggest Cheater, Biggest Fraud And Jerk


    Major League Baseball's Players Union Leader, Donald Fehr, will go down as the worst Players Rep in sports, and commissioner Bud Selig as the worst commissioner, mainly forn letting the steroid issue get out of hand, and Barry Bonds is a jerk, plain and simple for lying about his steriod use.
    Any record he breaks should have the biggest asterick available next to it. It is disgusting the way the media drools over every move he makes when there are much more exciting things going on in baseball. I could care less if he breaks the home run record. If he does, hopefully Hank Aaron will refuse to participate in the charade

    Today in History.....March 9

    On this day in …

    * 1796, the future emperor of France, Napoleon Bonaparte, married Josephine de Beauharnais. The couple divorced in 1809

    * 1860, the first Japanese ambassador to the United States (Niimi
    Buzennokami) and his staff arrived in San Francisco

    * 1862, during the Civil War, the ironclads Monitor and Virginia (formerly Merrimac) clashed for five hours to a draw at Hampton Roads, Va.

    * 1916, Mexican raiders led by Pancho Villa attacked Columbus, N.M., killing more than a dozen people

    * 1933, Congress, called into special session by President Roosevelt, began its "hundred days" of enacting New Deal legislation

    * 1945, during World War II, U.S. B-29 bombers launched incendiary bomb attacks against Japan

    * 1975, work began on the Alaskan oil pipeline

    * 1977, about a dozen armed practitioners of that "religion of peace" invaded three buildings in Washington, killing one person and taking more than 130 hostages. The siege ended two days later

    * 1996, the space shuttle Columbia landed safely a day late at the Kennedy Space Center, ending a 16-day mission

    * 2001, a judge in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., sentenced 14-year-old Lionel Tate to life in prison for killing Tiffany Eunick, a six-year old girl. (Tate's first-degree murder conviction and sentence were later overturned; he pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and received a new sentence of probation, but is now accused of violating that probation.)

    * 2005, a disgraced Dan Rather signed off for the last time as principal anchorman of "The CBS Evening News"

    Wednesday, March 08, 2006

    L.B.D.G.

    Local Boy Done Good, Phoenix boy Dierks Bentley
    was just nominated for ACM's Top Vocalist of the Year, he's in tough competition. Puts on great shows, tip a domestic, light and cold one for Dierks!

    Look What's Coming....Mental Typewriters!

    Still very slow, but they are continuing to improve. Signals from the brain are measured by 128 electrodes affixed to the subject's scalp, similar to an electroencephalogram (EEG). With the help of a software program, specific signals are picked out among the nebulous mass of information.
    The computer's self-learning capacity allows it to identify individual brain patters and constantly improve its performance.
    By analyzing neural signals it is possible to determine before the actual movement takes place whether a person intends to move his or her right or left hand, for example.

    Very cool, here's the press release.

    A Broke Back Moment?

    Damn, I guess that movie had an effect on some people.

    Man, at what point do you make a decision to do this? How would anything like this ever creep into your mind? And this guy is a Deputy Fire Chief! This incident happened in my great state of Arizona.....and about 4-5 miles from where I live!

    What a baaaaaaaaad, baaaaaaad choice, this gives the term "sheep herder" a whole new meaning.

    What am I talking about? Go to this link and get freaked out:
    http://www.azcentral.com/community/gilbert/articles/0307deputychief-sheep07-ON.html

    Yah......Right

    If Europe is the cancer, then Islam is the cell that metastasizes.

    Today in History.....March 8

    On this day in …
    * 1854, U.S. Commodore Matthew C. Perry made his second landing in Japan; within a month, he concluded a treaty with the Japanese

    * 1917, Russia's "February Revolution" (so called because of the Old Style calendar being used by Russians at the time) began with rioting and strikes in St. Petersburg. ALSO: the U.S. Senate voted to limit filibusters by adopting the cloture rule

    * 1942, Japanese forces captured Rangoon, Burma, during World War II

    * 1965, the United States landed about 3,500 Marines in South Vietnam

    * 1996, Wall Street plummeted in a major selloff triggered by seemingly good economic news — a drop in the nation's unemployment rate and the biggest jobs gain in more than a decade. (Investors apparently worried that a stronger economy would mean no more interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve.) ALSO: Dr. Jack Kevorkian was acquitted of assisted suicide for helping two suffering patients kill themselves

    * 2001, the Republican-controlled House voted for an across-the-board tax cut of nearly $1 trillion in the next decade, handing President Bush a major victory only 48 days into his term

    * 2005, President Bush said authoritarian rule in the Middle East had begun to ease, and he insisted anew that Syria had to end its nearly three-decade occupation of Lebanon. ALSO: Hundreds of thousands jammed a central Beirut square, chanting support for Syria in a thundering show of strength by the militant group Hezbollah.
    Chechen rebel leader Aslan Maskhadov was killed in northern Chechnya during a raid by Russian forces

    Tuesday, March 07, 2006

    From One of the David's....

    Monster blogger Glenn Reynolds at InstaPundit has a new book hitting the shelves today titled "An Army of Davids: How Markets and Technology Empower Ordinary People to Beat Big Media, Big Government, and Other Goliaths,"

    Buy a copy and join the revolution!

    Ladies: Wear No Veil, Expect Rape

    The Koranic order says that the man has to "go to the woman" whenever he likes, to "enjoy her however he likes", and to discipline her in case she develops her own ideas like sexual self-determination.

    Why is the raping of unveiled women, either Muslim or non-Muslim, now spreading widely in our countries?

    The current rape wave is the vital expression of an ongoing jihad against women who under Western influence may drift slowly out of the grip of male Muslim hands.

    Excerpt:

    Its biologistic "thinking" demands the "pure" man as the real human dominating the "impure" woman as a lower form, rather close to some animal-like existence. Therefore, sexuality cannot be sublimated and has to serve - aside from ramifications into homo-, paedo- and sodo-variants - a basic double function: fertilizing and punishing.

    And what about the feminists?

    The Western feminists keep silent because they are not interested in the general problem but rather concentrate on clutching to their few elitarian privileges, mainly in business.

    I didn't know this:

    In Muslim society the male is dominant and almighty since he is made after God, when women have been created as a necessary evil to tempt males. In other words, the female body is the closest thing to the Devil, something which has to be dominated as a proof a faith.

    Or this:

    Rape is learned behavior in the home.

    Or this:

    There is no "culture" in the world where more married people practice anal intercourse than in Islam. Individually it is again connected to a regression of the adult person into a childhood ego-idea closing the Oedipal circle of hating the female uniqueness one more time.

    Another excerpt:

    Inside the Palestinian territories, I collected a lot of different stories involving raping of an innocent girl who later on was slaughtered by her own father or cousin, because she had lost her virginity.

    If you have 10 minutes or so, read this fascinating and eye-opening interview from Front Page Mag, "To Rape An Unveiled Woman"

    The Religion of Peace is anything but.

    A Religion Turning Into An Idealogy

    In no way am I an expert on Islam, the folks over at Little Green Footballs and Democracy Frontline have great insight on this topic, but what I see is that we are witnessing the religion of Islam turning into an idealogy.

    We are not at war with Islam, but with radical Islam. These radical terrorists are twisting and perverting Islam and turning it into an idealogy, one that promotes slavery, oppression, and the oppression of women. They are using Islam as a tool to indoctrinate the radical Islam idealogy. Look at the University of North Carolina student who ran over 9 people with his SUV a few days ago......(the left will say the SUV did it, :-) or what about a hate crime) ..... to "avenge the death of Muslims around the world". It's crazy.

    Leaders from around the world need to get together and ask the Muslim world for a reformation of Islam and/or call for these radical nutjobs to cease their violent ways. I'm afraid if this doesn't happen, we will be at war with Islam, that will get VERY ugly, especially since there over a billion of them out there.

    Today in History.....March 7

    On this day in …

    * 1850, in a three-hour speech to the U.S. Senate, Daniel Webster endorsed the Compromise of 1850 as a means of preserving the Union

    * 1876, Alexander Graham Bell received a patent for his telephone

    * 1911, the United States sent 20,000 troops to the Mexican border as a precaution in the wake of the Mexican Revolution

    * 1926, the first successful trans-Atlantic radio-telephone conversation took place, between New York and London

    * 1936, Adolf Hitler, ym"sh, ordered his troops to march into the Rhineland, thereby breaking the Treaty of Versailles and the Locarno Pact

    * 1945, during World War II, U.S. forces crossed the Rhine River at Remagen, Germany, using the damaged but still usable Ludendorff Bridge

    * 1975, the Senate revised its filibuster rule, allowing 60 senators to limit debate in most cases, instead of the previously required two-thirds of senators present

    * 2001, Ariel Sharon was sworn in as Israel's prime minister

    * 2005, President Bush nominated John Bolton to be U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. ALSO: The presidents of Syria and Lebanon announced that Syrian forces would pull back to Lebanon's eastern Bekaa Valley by March 31, but that a complete troop withdrawal would be deferred until after later negotiation

    Monday, March 06, 2006

    Big & Rich's Next Hit

    Their first hit, "Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy" appears to have a follow up after viewing last nights Oscar show, the song titled "Ride a Cowboy, Lose an Oscar."

    The Kettle Calling The Pot Black

    From Drudge
    She is...and she's a total dope, and of course I put her in the right. ;-)

    STREISAND: BUSH IS DUMMBE; ESSAY FILLED WITH SPELLING ERRORSMon Mar 06 2006 11:43:52 ETBarbra Streisand has launched a new spelling error-ridden dispatch on the Internet -- a dispatch that mocks President Bush for being a "C student!"In her February 28th, 2006 essay, Streisand flubs 11 words, a personal record.• Irag• curruption• dictatoriship• crediblity• Adminstration• warrented• desperatly• preceedings• ouside• subpoening• responsibiltyAnd this time around, Streisand makes four spelling errors -- in one sentence!["In the 1970’s, during the Nixon Adminstration, serious political curruption arose and the Republican leadership stepped up and took responsibilty by holding hearings and subpoening administration officials."] Streisand has not seen fit to run a spellcheck on the rant as of Noon, March 06."The arrogance of this C student," Streisand says of Bush. Memories... In 2002, Streisand issued a "TRUTH ALERT: IN RESPONSE TO DRUDGE REPORT STORY ABOUT MISSPELLINGS IN MEMO."

    A Man's Man


    "You can red shirt me or you can play me. It's your choice, but I am not going to be around after four years, I have a life to live."
    ASU Coach Bruce Snyner was told this by Pat Tillman when he suggested that Tillman was not big enough, tall enough or fast enough to make the team as a freshman.

    I think everyone by now has become familiar with Pat Tillman and what an extraordinary life he lived.

    Pat Tillman was not motivated by football or money or cheering fans, but by life and it's deep meaning. He was in search of something and wanted to make a difference and a contribution to the world...........and boy did he ever.

    Here we have a very smart guy, graduated summa cum laude in 3 1/2 years with an impressive 3.84 GPA in marketing and finance, and a 3.6 million dollar contract to play in the NFL with the Arizona Cardinals. He was different.... climbing the light towers at Sun Devil Stadium 200 feet in the air to study and meditate, ran a marathon just "see what it would be like", then ran a 70 mile triathalon as a warm-up to 2001 NFL season, rode his bicycle to practice for the Arizona Cardinals while all of the other players drove to practice in their massive SUV's and luxury cars. Yet he decided to give that up to pursue the terrorists that invaded our country on September 11, 2001.

    Good for us.....bad for the terrorists. Unfortunately he was killed by friendly fire in a confusing battle in the middle of the night. With an investigation underway to uncover what really happened, it appears there may be more to this event that what was previously reported.

    I for one would hope that this is something that is kept between the military and Tillman's family. Of course it is painful to lose someone, but I don't know if WE really need to find out all of the details. If there were mistakes, then correct them, war is hell and very crazy.

    I got to see him play at ASU and with the Arizona Cardinals, he was the most exciting player to watch, he led the team in tackles in 2000 and would just flat out knock the crap out of anyone in his way. After he laid guys out on the football field, he was the first one there help them back up...he was awesome.

    I think most people want to remember Pat Tillman as a guy who bled red, white and blue and died heroically for his country. I believe he touched everyone and instilled a great sense of patriotic pride in us.......maybe that was his purpose here on earth.

    Pat Tillman will never be forgotten, let's just hope this investigation will be kept under wraps to an extent and not smear the great things that he brought to the USA.

    Today in History.....March 6

    On this day in …

    * 1834, the city of York in Upper Canada was incorporated as Toronto

    * 1836, Mexican forces captured the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas, killing the last of 187 defenders who had held out in the fortified mission for 13 days. Famous frontiersman Davy Crockett was among those killed on the final day.

    * 1857, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down its landmark ruling that black slave Dred Scott could not sue for his freedom in a federal court, even though his white master had died in a "free" state

    * 1930, prepackaged frozen food produced by the company set up by Clarence Birdseye went on sale for the first time in 10 stores in Springfield Massachusetts

    * 1944, during World War II, American bombers flying from Britain began the first daytime attacks on Berlin

    * 1967, Svetlana Alliluyeva, Stalin's daughter, requested asylum at the United States embassy in New Delhi

    * 1981, Walter Cronkite signed off for the last time as principal anchorman of "The CBS Evening News"

    * 1996, a federal appeals court struck down Washington state's ban on doctor-assisted suicide. ALSO: Lamar! Alexander and Dick Lugar announced they were dropping out of the race for the Republican presidential nomination

    Friday, March 03, 2006

    Please Pass This Link On...

    Saddam's Torture Chambers...

    Go to this link by Michael Trotten and pass it on. The 16th photo is very touching and sad.

    Yes, going into Iraq was justified! Murdering innocent people, especially children, is unconscionable, maybe the left will see this one day.

    W.W.J.G.D

    What Would Joe Gringo Do?

    Appoint Victor Davis Hanson Secretary of State in 2008.

    VDH and Krauthammer on the same day is always a good thing.

    Read Mr. Hanson's article "Rocks and Ripples" on playing it smart in the ME.

    Excerpt:

    We should praise the relatively free voting that ushered in Hamas, insist that they institutionalize the process that brought them to power, but under no circumstances give such terrorists any American money as long as they pledge to destroy Israel.

    Allowing the autocratic Mr. Mubarak to go his own way without any more American largess may well empower the Muslim Brotherhood. Fine. Let the zealots talk all they want about bringing corruption-free government to Egypt at last, and hatred of the United States too. In response, America need only quietly explain that we no longer subsidize dictators — or terrorists who are elected to power through principled American support for democratic elections. I'm sure that after all the invective subsides, the Egyptians can sort out both our logic and idealism.

    Krauthammer And Another Must Read

    Got a late start today, but never to late to read Charles Krauthammer. Read his article "Oscars for Osama here, most of Hollywood is just plain pathetic.
    They put out 4 movies (that I know of) that slap the USA right in the face in a time of war, they are Syriana, Munich, Paradise Now (not a Hollywood film, but highly endorsed) and Gary Busey's movie "Valley of the Wolves", screw all of these actors and shame on them.

    Excerpt:

    On the very night the Oscars will be honoring "Syriana," American soldiers will be fighting, some perhaps dying, in defense of precisely the kind of tolerant, modernizing Muslim leader that "Syriana" shows America slaughtering.

    Today in History.....March 3

    On this day in …

    * 1849, the U.S. Department of the Interior was established

    * 1849, Congress created the Minnesota Territory

    * 1879, Belva Ann Bennett Lockwood became the first woman to be admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court

    * 1931, "The Star-Spangled Banner" officially became the national anthem of the United States

    * 1945, the Mutual Broadcasting System had Superman encounter Batman and Robin for the first time

    * 1991, Rodney King was severely beaten by Los Angeles police officers. The case sparked a national outcry after a snippet of video was made public

    * 1996, Israel declared all-out war on the militant group Hamas after a bus bomb in Jerusalem killed 19 people, including the bomber, the third such suicide attack in eight days

    * 2005, President Bush visited CIA headquarters, where he promised agency employees they would retain an "incredibly vital" role in safeguarding the nation's security despite the creation of a new post of national director of intelligence. ALSO: Millionaire adventurer Steve Fossett became the first person to fly around the world alone without stopping or refueling, touching down in central Kansas after a 67-hour, 23,000-mile journey

    Thursday, March 02, 2006

    The Kid From Brooklyn

    In case you haven't heard this guy, check out The Kid From Brooklyn and go to the video tab
    and then view the highest rated videos.

    Warning......if you've got tender ears, this may not be for you, f-bombs run rampant, my gofling buddies and me nearly passed out from laughing so hard.

    Another Time Waster......Takes 1 Minute

    From Ace of Spades it's a fun little game. Go here to play

    Air America Radio

    has been cancelled in Phoenix........aahhhh.

    When Hugh Hewitt goes to commercial breaks, I would sometimes tune in to Air America to see what other side is up to, that only lasted about a week. Have you ever heard Randi Rhodes? This nasaly, whining hag does nothing but bitch and moan.....can you imagine being married to a nag like that? No new ideas, only bash GW Bush and anything conservative.

    BTW......Air America was replaced by.........a Christian radio program.....heh heh.

    Today in History.....March 2

    On this day in …

    * 1836, Texas declared its independence from Mexico

    * 1877, Republican Rutherford B. Hayes was declared the winner of the 1876 presidential election over Democrat Samuel J. Tilden, even though Tilden had won the popular vote

    * 1917, Puerto Ricans were granted U.S. citizenship

    * 1943, the World War II Battle of the Bismarck Sea began

    * 1977, the U.S. House of Representatives adopted a strict code of ethics

    * 2001, the United Nations tried in vain to persuade Afghanistan's ruling Taliban to reverse its decision to destroy a pair of giant, ancient statues of Buddha and other Buddhist relics that the regime considered idolatrous

    Wednesday, March 01, 2006

    Readers and Bloggers....Take this survey

    Take this survey from BlogAds, it's trying uncover what makes readers tick....and tell them that Joe Gringo sent 'ya on question 23!

    It only takes a few minutes.

    Biotech Rice?

    Better for you and pesticide free....can't believe that time is here.

    China will reap substantial economic, environmental and worker safety rewards from its imminent approval of biotech rice, a California expert told a U.S. Department of Agriculture conference here last week.

    More here

    Hillary Clinton Can......

    .....kiss my ass.

    I just felt like writing that.

    Today in History.....March 1

    On this day in …

    * 1781, the Continental Congress adopted the Articles of Confederation

    * 1790, Congress authorized the first U.S. Census.

    * 1864, Rebecca Lee became the first black woman to receive an American medical degree, from the New England Female Medical College in Boston

    * 1872, Congress authorized creation of Yellowstone National Park

    * 1932, 20-month-old Charles A. Lindbergh Jr., the son of Charles and Anne Lindbergh, was kidnapped from the family home near Hopewell, N.J. (Remains identified as those of the child were found the following May.)

    * 1945, President Roosevelt, back from the Yalta Conference, proclaimed the meeting a success as he addressed a joint session of Congress

    * 1954, Puerto Rican nationalists opened fire from the gallery of the U.S. House of Representatives, wounding five congressmen.

    * 1961, President Kennedy established the Peace Corps

    * 1981, Irish Republican Army member Bobby Sands began a hunger strike at the Maze Prison in Northern Ireland; he died 65 days later

    * 1996, President Clinton slapped economic sanctions on Colombia, concluding that Colombian authorities had not fully cooperated with the U.S. war on drugs

    * 2001, Afghanistan's ruling Taliban, defying international protests, began destroying all statues in the country. Seven foreign oil workers (a Chilean, an Argentine, a New Zealander and four
    Americans) who were kidnapped the previous October in Ecuador's jungle were freed after a ransom was reportedly paid

    * 2005, Dennis Rader, accused of leading a double life as the BTK serial killer, was charged in Wichita, Kan., with 10 counts of first-degree murder. (Rader later pleaded guilty and received multiple life sentences.) ALSO: A closely divided Supreme Court outlawed the death penalty for juvenile criminals.