Olmert's Hypocrisy

Yesterday, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert spoke before a joint session of Congress. During his speech he spoke about the terror attacks his country faced (and continues to face). He spoke about his memories of Galila, a twelve year old Ethiopian immigrant, who was killed in a suicide bombing while he was mayor of Jerusalem. He also spoke of the murder of Daniel Wultz, a 16 year old from Florida who succumbed to the wounds inflicted from the last suicide bombing in Israel.

He tried implying that their lives are important to him and that he will do everything in his power to bring the terrorists to justice. But his actions speak louder than his words. He must understand that the Ahmadinejad didn't become what he is today overnight. It took time for him to build his way up. When Olmert allows the Palestinian terrorists to do as they wish he is only emboldening them. His rewards to the terrorists - the Gaza expulsion this summer and the expulsion of Amona - speak louder than the words he told the members of Congress.

The blood of innocent Israelis and Palestinians who were killed as a result of the continued violence rests on his shoulders. Yet he has the nerve to use people who have died for something which he himself doesn't believe in only so that he can broaden his political power. Shame on you Olmert!

English 101

A big problem we face with illegal aliens is their inability to master the English language. However, it doesn't need to be this way. The reason that they don't learn English is because we allow them to get around using their native language. If we were to speak only English then they would be forced to either learn the language or not be able to survive in this country.

This isn't a theoretical plan, it is based on facts. A friend of mine went to Russia for a year. When he left he wasn't able to read or write Russian, and could barely speak a few words. He assumed that since English is the international language, that he would be able to get around just fine with English. He was in for a surprise. Whether or not the locals actually understood English and pretended that they didn't, or if they truly didn't understand, is unknown. But this caused my friend to come to the realization that you can't live in a foreign country and not know the language. By the time he left he spoke a fluent Russian (with an American accent), because he realized that without it he wouldn't be able to survive there.

Perhaps if we were so accommodating to illegal aliens (legal visitors not included) a big part of the problem would be solved. Many would learn to speak the language and assimilate somewhat into our culture or leave. Sounds like a plan to me, now we need to convince the politicians (yeah, right).

The Rolling Memorial

I got this email which I think deserves to be posted. John Holmgren is a trucker from Shafer, MN. The trucker has been pulled over numerous times by officers who simply wanted to have their picture taken with his truck. His truck is a 9/11 memorial; the names of all the people who lost their lives on 9/11 are painted on his truck.

Child Safety

I saw a report about a 3 year old Mexican child who died in the desert. He was trying to enter the country illegaly with his mother, who abandoned his dead body. She was caught by the Border Patrol and arrested, at which time she told them about her dead child.

Don't we frown upon endangering the welfare of a child? Isn't it illegal to leave a child unattended? We don't look too highly upon people who use children in armies because they are placing them in a dangerous situation. So why should this be any different? Perhaps this is yet another difference between our culture and that of Mexico. Maybe after they change the official language of the United States to Spanish they will allow parents to endanger the welfare of their children. Who knows what will be next?

Where is the Problem?

There is no doubt in anybody's mind that there is some serious problems going on in the Middle East. I'm referring to the Israeli-Arab conflict. After decades of violence, the Oslo peace accords were supposed to bring peace and calm to the region. It never happened. As a matter of fact, the violence only intensified after Oslo. Why?

Every day the Israeli intelligence receives numerous terror threats and they evaluate each one. They then decide which course of action, if any, needs to be taken. In the past couple of hours, the Israeli police were put on high alert in Jerusalem, lowered, put back on high again, and once again lowered. The tiring cycle of going from high to low is based on intelligence gathered from various sources. The Karni crossing was closed as a result of the terror threats. When the crossing is closed the Palestinians aren't able to come into Israel, which ruins their economy. The crossing was closed not long after it was opened for humanitarian reasons. Who is responsible for the closing of the crossing and therefore the economic problems the Palestinians are suffering? If it weren't for the security issues it would be open all the time, therefore the Palestinians themselves are responsible for their troubles. The Palestinians are known for coming through checkpoints and attempting to blow themselves up.

Then there was this interesting article I read which describes the violence going on in the Palestinian cities among the various militant groups. I ask you: If these creatures aren't capable of living in harmony with their own brothers, are they capable of living peacefully with their cousins, the Jews? I have my doubts in their determination for true peace, I wonder why that is.

Bilingual Home Improvement

After my horrifying ordeal with repairmen, I decided to do the job myself. So I went to a Lowe's near my house to buy some things I would need. As I was cruising through the aisles I heard something a little disturbing. They were asking for assistance over the PA system, in both English and Spanish. Everytime that they would speak over the PA system, I would hear a chime. I felt like I was in an international airport.

The truth is that I have nothing against the Spanish language. However, a time like this, when people are demonstrating that we allow illegal aliens to come and get citizenship, it feels a bit awkward that everything needs to be repeated in both English and Spanish in a home improvement store. This isn't a souvenir shop where tourists are regularly found, in which case I would understand the need for everything to be bilingual. This is happening because we are being overrun by another culture. If this is how it is before they are legal, what will be when they become legal? Will they decide to learn English? I doubt it.

BBC

No one ever accused the English of being too bright, but this is special. I just had to post this because I find it funny how clueless some people are. This is the video of the BBC interview. They thought they were interviewing Guy Kewney, instead they interviewed a taxi driver. The picture at right shows Mr. Kewney at left and his replacement at right. They don't even slightly resemble each other! Yet somehow the English have managed to confuse the two of them.

Here is a video clip of the interview. His facial expression when he realizes what's about to happen is priceless. Got to give him credit, though, he played his part pretty well. He answered the questions he was asked without actually answering them. He can become a spokesman if he wants to.

What Was Patrick Kennedy Thinking?

Patrick Joseph Kennedy, Rhode Island congressman and son of Ted Kennedy, was involved in a car accident last week in the wee hours of the morning. Witnesses said he was travelling very quickly and was unable to keep his car in one lane. At 2:45am he drove his car into a security barrier near the Capitol. When he exited the vehicle he seemed drunk and was unable to stand steady. His eyes were red and watery, and his speech was slurred.

Pat Kennedy's parking spot at the Capitol

Kennedy claimed to have been on the way to take a vote. He later addmitted having gone home and taken Phenergan and Ambien. He denied any consumption of alcohol, although there are people who claim they saw him drinking earlier on. Police were instructed by higher-ups not to take a sobriety test, and to drive him home (what happened to the vote?). In his statement, Kennedy said the drugs had caused him to believe that he was supposed to be at a vote at 3:00am. Why was he up at 3:00am, isn't the Ambien supposed to keep him asleep? Especially since he was also taking Phenergan, which increases the potentcy of Ambien.

Kennedy has a history he should be aware of. He comes from a clan which has been struck by many catastrophies. Ordinary people shouldn't drive vehicles or operate machinary while they are impaired - regardless of the cause of their impairment (i.e. alcohol or drugs). Pat Kennedy should be more cautious than the rest of us, just as someone with a family history of heart disease needs to take precautions to avoid a heart attack. Or perhaps he was just trying to emulate his father's actions?

When Bush Meets Bush

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

The story and Jekyll and Hyde is a famous one, known to all. I don't know why it became so famous, but I think I figured out why people have that special feeling for it. The story of Jekyll and Hyde, although a novel, is actually a true story. Although the author, Robert Louis Stevenson, wrote it as a novel and probably didn't base it on anything in particular, I nevertheless believe that it is a story we are all too well familiar with.

All people have split personality to some degree. On some people it is so obvious that it entirely disrupts their lives and they need to seek medical treatment for it. Most people, however, aren't split all that much and can do a good job at containing their other personalities. We all have those times when we're not sure if we should do something or not, I don't mean indecision - I mean conscience. This doesn't mean that only people who are criminals and break laws have this split personality, we all live with it on a daily basis.

That might explain why the story of Jekyll and Hyde has a soft spot in many people's heart. However, if this is true then what did the story introduce if Jekyll and Hyde are living inside of us?

Dr. Jekyll was a dangerous man. Although he was very well respected and did many good things for people, he nevertheless had a tendency to experiment with the forbidden part of himself. He changed himself into a "different person" as was then able to commit crimes. This helped as a great disguise so that the authorities wouldn't catch him, but he went even further than that. He used that as an excuse to justify his actions in his own eyes. For he, Dr. Jekyll, didn't do anything wrong, it was someone else - Mr. Hyde.

This story teaches us, or at least it should, that there is a very fine line that we must be careful not to cross. There are many temptations that we have as humans, which is natural, and at times we give in to those temptations, which is also natural. However, we shouldn't convince ourselves that it is not really wrong, or that it is not really us who are doing wrong. For if we make that fatal mistake we will learn the hard way, as Dr. Jekyll has, that they potion we used wasn't pure - and now it's too late to find the pure potion.


Last night I couldn't sleep and my mind started drifting and the above post entered my mind. Weird, no? I think that the next time I can't sleep at night I will count sheep.