Compare. Contrast.

Posted on September 25, 2008 by Phil Kadath

In the UK, the Dhimmitude has set in deep

Councillors have been ordered not to eat during town hall meetings while Muslim colleagues fast during the holy month of Ramadan.

All elected members at Left-wing Tower Hamlets Council in East London have been sent an email asking them to follow strict Islamic fasting during September no matter what their faith.

As well as restricting food and drink until after sunset, the authority’s leaders have decided to reduce the number of meetings throughout the month so they do not clash with the requirements of Ramadan.

Re-read that first line: Not asked to forgo snacks and/or lunch, ordered. Ordered to starve themselves when the sun shines. I wonder if diabetics will be excused a piece of fruit so that they don’t pass out?

Contrast their attitude to the ChiCom approach to their holiday

Chinese authorities in the northwestern region of Xinjiang, home to the Muslim Uyghur ethnic group, are implementing a campaign to offer free lunches during the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, when eating is proscribed until sundown.

The lunches are being offered in government departments to ethnic Uyghur and Han Chinese officials alike, employees said.

The Uyghur’s are complaining that the government is doing it so as to see who accepts. Tough shit. At least they’re not getting Ancient Chinese Secret Headache Medicine (aka: a bullet to the back of the head) like the Christian Chinese.

Both links found @ Counting Cats in Zanzabar 

Posted in Order of the imperial upraised middle finger. | Leave a comment

You are not as hated as you think

Posted on September 24, 2008 by Phil Kadath

At least not by some Europeans.

A few weeks back The Baron got folks’ feathers riled by showing them the Jeep 38 and telling them that Chrysler was becoming the automotive equivalent of Heckler & Koch.

This may be true, but look at what happened with the Hummer. I think that we will be able to see something similar in five years or so.

Personally, unless you absolutely had to have a diesel engine, I don’t know why someone would go for something so easily stolen. If you wanted something like the Jeep 38, buy a mid-90’s Comanche, slide a Dana 44 under the back with some overload springs, and bars over the bed to cover with your selected color of canvas, and you’d be set. Or you could just buy a Buddy, like I did (95% of all the Cherokee parts will fit on a Comanche).

Or, for those that don’t want to wait, you can go Italian

a19.jpg

Okay, granted the Campagnola is not targeted towards mainstream buyers. But for a hard-core off-roader (or military procurement officer), Fiat’s truck subsidiary Iveco is now offering an alternative to the Land Rover Defender or Jeep Wrangler, only with some decidedly retro, premium touches. We brought you initial details on the Giugiaro-styled Campagnola just a few days ago, but now Iveco has released a whole new batch of high-resolution images and full details for your perusal. In brief, the Campagnola is based on the Massif, which Iveco launched just this past March, and is is powered by a 16-valve 3.0-liter four-cylinder diesel with variable-geometry turbocharger driving 176 horsepower through a locking differential and six-speed manual to all four wheels. It’s available only in green or beige, with matching steel rims and a fully outfitted cabin.

I don’t have a whole lot of experience with the Iveco trucks, but of the three that we have at my place of employ, only one has been in the shop for something other than an oil change in just under three years and an average of 90K miles. The records show a faulty relay of some sort, which figures, it is Italian.

The Campagnola passes Euro emissions, so it should pass them here as well. Which means that if you talk to an Iveco dealer, they could probably get you a line on one via Canada.

I see their box vans/trucks all over on a daily basis, so they have to be better than half-assed if folks are willing to fleet them. Anyone here got any extra info on Iveco?

Posted in Kewel! | 2 Comments

In a snit

Posted on September 24, 2008 by Phil Kadath

And you may ask yourself, just how anal retentive can Democrats get?

The state Democratic Party filed suit today, asking that Secretary of State Sam Reed list Dino Rossi’s party preference as “Republican Party” on the general election ballot. When Rossi filed for office, he listed his party preference as “GOP Party.”

Rossi has said he’s always used the term GOP to identify his party and isn’t trying to confuse voters about his party affiliation.

But the Democrats, who argue the Republican Party has become a damaged brand, say that’s exactly what Rossi is doing.

You can go here to see a compilation of Rossi’s ads from 2004 that all say GOP.

I can’t wait until this one gets laughed out of court. I just hope that one of the major media outlets says something about it when it does.

In an odd twist, for those who follow the link, you’ll also see how this would disqualify all of the ballots already mailed to voters outside the US, including Washington based military voters.

Can you say disenfranchise?

I knew you could.

Posted in Count ANY Vote | 2 Comments

Just because they’re not as left-wing as he is

Posted on September 24, 2008 by Phil Kadath

Doesn’t make them Republicans.

Local bigwig leftist blogger, Goldy of HorsesAss.org decides that a tiarade is in order after the Seattle Times publishes an editorial telling (Barely) Governor Christine Gregoire that her ads about taxpayer funded embryonic stem cell research are stupid and that she should stick to actual talking points, like her budget deficit.

Yeah, well, the truth is, the only difference between me and say, the Seattle Times editorial board is not that one of us is overtly partisan while one is not, but rather, that only one of us has the balls to openly admit it. For if the Times is going to routinely dismiss HA as mere party propaganda, what the hell do they call today’s editorial calling on Gov. Chris Gregoire to stop talking about embryonic stem cell research?

He then quotes the editorial. Afterwards, he says the stupidest thing I’ve read at his place for at least a couple weeks

Jesus H. Christ… if that’s not a WSRP talking point, I don’t know what is! The governor’s stem cell ads are without a doubt the most evocative and effective of the campaign, and the Times damn well knows it. That’s why they chose to use their bully pulpit to try to bully her into pulling the spots. I mean, could they be any more obvious?

I can’t tell if he has just had too much to drink or if he is really accusing the Times of actually taking a talking point from the Washington State Republican Party. The former would be natural for him. The latter would be impossible unless we’ve slipped into Bizarro World.

The stem cell ads are insipid beyond belief. Mostly because within about 36 hours after her swearing in Gregoire completely forget that she pledged a major stem cell research initiative during her campaign. They all feature the same story line that the ads during the Presidential race of 2004 took:

“Hi, my name is so and so. I have such and such disease. If (Republican Name Here) didn’t enjoy seeing people suffer so much, he/she wouldn’t oppose stem cell research, and I’d be completely cured by now.”

Never mind that plenty of private, non-taxpayer funded research is going on with embryonic stem cells, and again, never mind that Gregoire left those voters out on the porch of the Governor’s mansion waiting for a kiss after their date, Goldy is mad. I may not be the slimmest fellow on my block, but when Goldy gets mad he turns green and becomes The Incredible Bulk.

Posted in Dare To Be Stupid | Leave a comment

What voting for “Change” will get you

Posted on September 24, 2008 by Phil Kadath

Found via DANEgerus.

While I haven’t actually got this particular one yet, and while all the numbers are correct, this sounds like something that’d come in an chain email.

George Bush has been in office for 7 1/2 years. The first six the economy was fine.

A little over one year ago:

1) Consumer confidence stood at a 2 1/2 year high

2) Regular gasoline sold for $2.19 a gallon.

3) the unemployment rate was 4.5%.

4) the Dow Jones hit a record high–14,000

5) American’s were buying new cars,taking cruises, vacations overseas, living large!…

But American’s wanted ‘CHANGE’! So, in 2006 they voted in a Democratic Congress and yes–we got ‘CHANGE’ all right. In the PAST YEAR:

1) Consumer confidence has plummeted.

2) Gasoline is now over $4 a gallon & climbing!;

3) Unemployment is up to 5.5% (a 10% increase);

4) Americans have seen their home equity drop by $12 Trillion and prices still dropping;

5) 1% of American homes are in foreclosure.

6) as I write, the Dow is probing another low ~~ $2.5 Trillion has evaporated from their stocks, bonds, mutual funds and investment portfolios!

Yes, in 2006 America voted for change, and we sure got it!

Posted in The Left is Never Right | Leave a comment

SOS Equipment

Posted on September 23, 2008 by Phil Kadath

Instapundit reader, Fernando Colina, writes

And in the good ole Houston, USA, in the aftermath of IKE, telephones, internet and cable TV were down, and cell phones were unreliable due the spike in traffic. The only means of communication that approached useful levels was SMS messaging and good ole AM/FM. Sometimes text messages would be delayed for minutes but they almost always got there. I’m putting my el-cheapo crank-up radio in a pedestal next to my cell phone. They kept us in touch and made us comfortable for 60 hours. And let’s not forget the car charger for our phone. Sure, a generator is great, a car-pluggable DC-AC inverted will do work for small appliances, but a lowly $20 battery charger plugged to your car 12V outlet will power your radios, phones, flashlights, even coffee makers can make the difference between terror and small comfort.

Reynolds gets a follow up question about the Uninterruptible Power Supplies he mentions in a sentence following that

Yeah. I have a bunch of big uninterruptible power supply units for my computers, DSL modem, wi-fi, etc. These will keep the Internet going for days without power — so long as the Internet is up, of course — and also recharge gadgets like cellphones and laptops.

This is the unit he recommends. Not bad for $200.

I might also recommend back up cables, but that may be just because I’ve never trusted wi-fi and am still hardwired to the wall.

In the By Ourselves, For Ourselves series, I introduced you to The Darrells (of which I now own three). They are good for portable power. The UIPS’s are for larger amperage items you may want to run temporarily.

———-

One other link I found while cleaning out the links this weekend was this link to a blog written by New Yorker, Amy Langfield. It is her account of being stuck in NYC during the big blackout of 2003.

4:10 p.m. The subway stops. Air conditioning goes off.
4:13 p.m. “Attention passengers, we have lost power.”
4:15 p.m. “Attention passengers, we have lost power. We have lost power.”

Female passenger (to much laughter): “And…?”

The train is pretty full. All seats are occupied and about 20 people are standing. A pregnant woman – 7 months or so – sitting in the middle of the train is being fussed over by several passengers. She is fanning herself, people offering water and asking about her health. Some guy at other end of the car starts singing “Maria” from the Sound of Music and he is persuaded to shut up.

It goes on a great deal and talks about getting the hell out of the subway and then not having any cash, and attempting to find food, water and light for many, many hours in ‘da big citay.

Well worth your time.

Posted in By Ourselves, For Ourselves | 3 Comments

It’s not like she needed it or anything

Posted on September 23, 2008 by Phil Kadath

Just under two years ago, a Thurston County middle school teacher was made to resign after she was found to have brought a firearm to school. The teacher had told both the school administration and the police that she had only brought it to protect herself from her husband, for whom she had recently gotten a protection order on after he threatened her with a gun.

They ignored the clear and present threat, patted her on the head and told her not to worry her little self over it. Shortly afterwards, they said that if she refused to resign, they’d fire her and have charges pressed against her. Yes, she had a valid Washington State Concealed Pistol License at the time.

Her name was Mary Catherine Roe.

And now to the present day.

Over the weekend, a multiple convicted felon murdered a US Forest Service K9 officer, Kristine Fairbanks, when she pulled him over in Olympic National Park for not having any plates on his van. Shortly thereafter, he ditched the van and committed a home invasion robbery, killing the homeowner, Richard Ziegler, and stealing his truck.

When the man was spotted a few hours later, he decided to go into a quickdraw competition with Clallam County Sheriff Deputies and lost.

It was later discovered that he had been recently released by the state Dept. of Corrections and there was somewhat of a warrant out for his arrest because he had failed to check in with his probation officer. I say “somewhat” because the probation officer had requested one be issued on September 10th, but as of this weekend, it had not yet happened.

His name was Shawn M. Roe. Mary Roe’s violent ex-husband.

With all of the domestic violence rules in place that give women the upper hand when they need it (and sometimes when they don’t deserve it), why isn’t one of them the ability to carry a legal and permitted concealed weapon anywhere they damn well please not one of them.

Let us hope that, at the very least, all of this carnage will lead to some changes in that direction.

I’m sure that we all remember Medford, OR school teacher, Shirley Katz, who made the same request and was also denied.

Posted in Evil walks the earth | 1 Comment

What do they not know about this

Posted on September 23, 2008 by Phil Kadath

The left-wing hate blogs are going nuts the past 10 days with question like

Why is the corporate media refusing to write stories about McCain’s sleazy Keating Five banking scandal?

It is as though their computers are unable to access Wikipedia

The Ethics Committee ruled that the involvement of McCain in the scheme was also minimal, and he too was cleared of all charges against him. McCain was criticized by the Committee for exercising “poor judgment” when he met with the federal regulators on Keating’s behalf. The report also said that McCain’s “actions were not improper nor attended with gross negligence and did not reach the level of requiring institutional action against him….Senator McCain has violated no law of the United States or specific Rule of the United States Senate. On his Keating Five experience, McCain has said: “The appearance of it was wrong. It’s a wrong appearance when a group of senators appear in a meeting with a group of regulators, because it conveys the impression of undue and improper influence. And it was the wrong thing to do.”

Do they really want to bring this up? After all, The Messiah has had many more dealings with the people currently on the fecal roster of America. Do they really want folks to start looking into what other meetings Obama and his people had with Mae/Mac folks with only 42 days to go before election day?

Posted in Dare To Be Stupid | Leave a comment

Only in California

Posted on September 23, 2008 by Phil Kadath

Thankfully

Motorists entering the quaint, woodsy town of Olema near the sea in Marin County may notice a subtle change as they enter: it appears the burg’s name has been changed to ”Obama.”

Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama supporter and bed and breakfast owner Kelly Emery created a perfect mirror of the green sign people read as they enter the town’s limits.

Now people unfamiliar with the area may think they are entering the town of Obama, population: 55.

That’s Osilly.

If I remember correctly, Olema was the epicenter for the 1906 earthquake that leveled and then burned San Francisco.

And now the followers of the guy who the town is named after want to level and burn American capitalism.

Posted in Useful Idiots | Leave a comment

Presented Without Comment

Posted on September 22, 2008 by Alaska

Tactical Mosin-Nagant

Originally uploaded by Ry Jones

Tactical Mosin-Nagant

found at Ry’s (click pic to go there).

Posted in Uncategorized | 4 Comments