Myths of Iraq

In an article at realclearpolitics.com, an author and retired Army officer named Ralph Peters wrote a very impressive piece dicrediting many of the myths Americans are force fed about Iraq. He begins it this way:

During a recent visit to Baghdad, I saw an enormous failure. On the Part of our media. The reality in the streets, day after day, bore little resemblance to the sensational claims of civil war and disaster in the headlines.
No one with first-hand experience of Iraq would claim the country's in rosy condition, but the situation on the ground is considerably more promising than the American public has been led to believe. Lurid Exaggerations and instant myths obscure real, if difficult, progress.
I left Baghdad more optomisitic than I was before the visit. While cynicism, political bias, and the pressure of the 24/7 news cycle accelerate a race to the bottom of reporting, there are good reasons to be soberly hopeful about Iraq's future.

During the rest of the article, he attempts to disprove many of the myths about Iraq that we so commonly hear through the vision of his own personal experience over there. It is a very good and comprehensive story and everyone should read it. Enjoy.

-Brad

The Most Dangerous Man in Ohio

In my opinion, Ohio Judge John Conner is the most dangerous man in the state right now. Recently, he sentenced a convicted child rapist to ZERO jail time. Instead, this preditor is currently sitting in his home under house arrest. The man was convicted of forcing 2 boys, ages 5 and 12, to partake in oral and anal sex. This is an absolute outrage. As a citizen of Ohio, I cannot allow this man to sit on the bench as he is obviously incompetent. Want more proof? In 2004, Judge Conner had his law license suspended for six months because he was convicted of drunk driving for the second time in five years! Evidentally, Conner has over a half-dozen DUI's in his past.
Another sad part about this story is the lack of media coverage it is getting within the state. I had to hear about this through a national media outlet. So if the major media wont do its job, it is up to us to act accordingly. In doing so, I have contacted and will continue to contact people who can get to the bottom of this story, get it out to the public, and hopefully get this jerk removed from the bench. I still dont know all the details, but I assure you I will report them as soon as they are available. Stay Tuned.

-Brad

Bill Frist Wins Early Straw Poll

This weekend during the Southern Republican Leadership Conference, a straw poll was conducted to get an early view of the more than 1,400 Republicans leaders from 37 states. Since the conference was held in Tennessee, Frist's home state, it is believed he packed it with supporters so that he could tilt the poll in his favor, and it worked. Frist came in first with 36.9 of all votes cast. Frist's people were successful in getting him the small victory, one much needed as his mainstream appeal was seriously tarnished in 2005. Here are more results:

The shocker of the evening was that Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney placed second, besting far better-known rivals Arizona Sen. John McCain and Virginia Sen. George Allen. Romney finished with 14 percent of the vote.
Third place was shared by Allen and President Bush, each of whom won 10.3 percent of the ballots cast. Bush, who of course is not eligible to run again for president, was the write-in candidate that McCain was pushing through the weekend.

John McCain asked for people to write in Bush because he said that Republicans needed to show the president support during these tough times. However it has been widely reported that he did it because he knew about Frist's plan to inflate the vote. The one major candidate who was not in attendance over the weekend was Rudy Giuliani. Rudy has successfully kept American guessing on whether or not he will run in 2008, and not showing up for the SRLC only helped confuse his supporters.
The significance of this straw poll is marginal considering we are still 2 years from any nomination. However, the conference did help people hear from the laundry list of men who appear to be the current frontrunners. By the way, the winner of the last straw poll in 1998 was a little known Governor of Texas named George W. Bush

MSNBC is doing their own virtual straw poll of GOP candidates and you can vote here.

Source MSNBC

-Brad

Russ Feingold Must Go

I have realized recently the Wisconsin Senator Russ Feingold is a threat to the United States. Not only does the Senator vote for almost every anti-terror measure he can, including the Patriot Act, but now he wants a vote of censure against President Bush, which is obsurd. Let me just say that a censure vote really does not have any meaning, its used more just as an embarassing tool.

Sen. Russ Feingold, a potential presidential candidate, told CNN's "American Morning" the surveillance program is illegal and he will fight again the "intimidation campaign" that the Bush Administration has launched to defend it.
Feingold, a member of the Senate Judiciary and Intelligence committees, said a censure would "send a clear signal" that Bush's actions were "wrong."

Here is how the White House responded to this nonsense:

"I think it does raise the question, how do you fight and win the war on terrorism?" McClellan said. "And if Democrats want to argue that we shouldnt be listening to al Qaeda communication, its their right and we welcome the debate. We are a nation at war."

Exactly. Besides perhaps having a few screws loose, Feingold is only doing this for publicity. The man wants to run for president but he will never gain mainstream support, and this wont help. Im just glad the Democrats are back to these kinds of antics, because after last weeks ports fiasco, Republicans need to look good again.

Sources CNN and Washington Post

-Brad

Browns Offseason Looking Promising.

This guy pretty much sums up last season for the Cleveland Browns and us, the fans. They were pitiful. But today's Plain Dealer gave a good summary of what the Browns have been doing since free agency began and I must admit I am very impressed. Someone Pinch me. Here is the update:

They signed two-time Pro Bowl guard/center LeCharles Bentley of St. Ignatius and Ohio State, and receiver Joe Jurevicius of Mentor's Lake Catholic High -- and were finalizing a deal for punter Dave Zastudil of Bay Village, who visited Saturday and had dinner with team officials. They also signed former Falcons left tackle Kevin Shaffer to replace L.J Shelton.

Signing home grown talent sounds good to me. Ok that was what they have done, now here is what is in the works:

The Browns are trying to land Detroit defensive end Kalimba Edwards, Steelers safety Chris hope, Baltimore linebacker Bart Scott, and Oakland defensive tackle Ted Washington. Savaged (Browns GM) all but ruled out Redskins linebacker LaVar Arrington and did not appear to have Pats linebacker Willie McGinest on the front burner.

Its about damn time that a Cleveland team is willing to shell out the cash to get premium players and not hope that luck will make winners out of mediocrity. In my opinion, the offense is already looking playoff calibre, as long as they stay healthy, but we know how that goes. Now, especially with the draft coming up, the Browns must look for defense. They need speedy linebackers for the 3-4, so that should be top priority now. I know its early, but so far so good.

Source is the Plain Dealer

-Brad

In the News

Here are some of todays headlines:

Reports say there is discussion of closing Guantanamo Bay detention base for terrorists [source]

Moronic hecklers harass families of US soldiers killed in Iraq [source]

Bill Frist wins informal straw poll of GOP frontrunners for 2008 [source]

Tornadoes rip through Midwest; kill 2 in Missouri [source]

Bomb kills 4 US soldiers in Afghanistan [source]

Hit TV show 'The Sopranos' starts a new season tonight on HBO [source]

Sen. Russ Feingold wants to censure Pres. Bush over eavesdropping program [source]

Enjoy.

-Brad

Headlines this Weekend

Here are some top news stories of the weekend:

Former Yugoslovian leader Slobodon Milosevic found dead in his jail cell [Source]
American hostage Tom Fox tortured and killed by terrorists in Iraq [Source]
Rain expected in Phoenix today after record 143 days without any precip [Source]
The Dixie Chicks plan to release album with record bashing President Bush [source]
Jordan executes two terrorists convicted of killing American in 2002 [source]
Anti-Bush teacher Jay Bennish back in the classroom following suspension [source]
USA beats South Africa 17-0 in third game of World Baseball Classic; USA advances [source]
2008 GOP hopefulls gather in Tennessee to discuss issues and '06 election [source]
Former advisor to Pres. Bush Claude Allen arrested on theft charges [source]

-Brad

Awesome Chalk Artwork

I found this on Michellemalkin.com and thought it was amazing. It is a bunch of pics of sidewalk chalk artists who draw these unreal 3D pictures. Check it out.

-Brad

The Economy is Good Stupid

Contrary to popular belief, the US economy is doing great according to most economists. Even with ridiculous gas prices, a war on terror, and a large trade deficit, the economy continues to impress. The newly released Labor statistics from February illustrate the upward trend.

Hiring gained ground in February with employers adding 243,000 jobs, the most in three months.Brighter job prospects sent people streaming into the labor market, however, pushing the unemployment rate up marginally to 4.8 percent.

The story continues:

"Businesses are appearently seeing strong enough growth in demand for their goods and services to look for more workers-- and businesses are being forced to pay up for them because wages are rising strongly, too," said economist Joel Naroff, president of Naroff Economic Advisors. "The job market is becoming more and more friendly if you are a worker or looking to become one."
The unemployment rate inched up to 4.8 percent from a 4 1/2 year low of 4.7 percent in January. the bump-up in the jobless rate came as people -- feeling better about job prospects -- applied for work.
"You are seeing a large number of people coming out of the woodwork because there are jobs to be found. People are now looking for jobs because it is now worth looking," said Bill Cheney, chief economist at John Hancock.

For some reason, the positive news about the economy is largly under reported in the media. But the fact is that the economy is as good as its been since the recession we had when Bill Clinton left office in early 2001.

Source Yahoo Finance

-Brad

Bush Finally Speaks About Ports Deal

The President finally made public statements about the Dubai ports deal, unfortunetaly he is too late to save the failed proposal. Here's the story from CNN:
President Bush said Friday he was concerned about "the broader message" that the failed port operation deal with a United Arab Emirates company sends to other Arab allies in the U.S. war on terrorism.

"In order to win the war on terror, we've got to strengthen our relationships and friendships with moderate Arab countries in the Middle East," Bush told a meeting of the National Newspaper Association in Washington.
"The UAE is a committed ally in the war on terror. They are a key partner for our military in a critical region."

And here is the proof of that:

"Outside of our own country, Dubai [the UAE region where DP World is based] services more of our military ships than any country in the world," Bush said.
"We're sharing intelligence so we can hunt down the terrorists...I'm committed to strengthening our relationship with the UAE and explaining why its important to Congress and the American people."

Goodluck with that Mr. President. It seems appearant to me that the Democrats dont want allies unless they are European. Bush just needs to let this one go, talking about it now is just as bad as being silent before. The Damage has been done.

-Brad