misteramericano

Words on Wednesday

2010-06-02T10:13:00.001-07:00

There are two sides to every issue; often as not, one side is wrong.

-tdr

Consumer Alert

2007-04-28T08:46:00.000-07:00

After some thought, I've decided to consolidate my online writings into one blog. If you want to keep up with me, go to talesoftheheliosphere.com. It's the blog I used to use for writing on space and space exploration only. I've decided to make it my general blog.

-tdr

Stand By Your Man.

2007-04-24T08:59:00.000-07:00

Last night in 24land, Karen Hayes stood by her man. Unfortunately for her husband, CTU chief Bill Buchanan, her man turns out to be the comatose President, not her husband. Enjoy your retirement in the federal pen, Bill.

The good news is Buchanan's departure means Secret Agent Hottie Pants, the sexy Muslim, Nadia, now heads CTU. Yes!

In related news, yesterday The San Diego Union Tribune devoted an entire page to profiling the Presidents of the United States of 24land since "24" first aired. (Here.) Jack Bauer's country has careened from one crisis to another. It's a wonder 24land hasn't already gone to full-scale war.

Which brings us to the other good news. Finally somebody worthy of wearing the Imperial Purple, Vice-President Powers Booth, is acting as President. Let's get ready to rumble!

-tdr

Technorati: 24

All About The Benjamins.

2007-04-17T22:10:00.000-07:00

California's taxpayers are paying millions of dollars to fund embryonic stem cell research. California lawmakers want to make sure whatever cures eventually come out of this taxpayer-funded research are offered at reasonable prices and that royalty payments come back to the state. You might think the embryonic stem cell researchers taking government money would go along. Out of gratitude, if for no other reason. You'd be wrong. (Here.)

-tdr

Consequences of Iraq War

2007-04-17T22:00:00.000-07:00

Leftie surrender monkeys like to say that the war in Iraq has been counterproductive because it is a training ground for terrorists. Well, it turns out Iraq is teaching somebody else how to fight too: U.S. Marines.

"About 90 percent of these [boot camp] instructors are battle-tested. Many have multiple combat tours under their belts. Some have been wounded; some have received medals for valor. In short, they've been there and done that. ...

'The field training has changed dramatically since I joined in 1998,' said [Gunnery Sgt. Anthony] Loftus, the Marine Corps drill instructor of the year for 2006 and a two-tour veteran of the Iraq war. 'It is more combat-focused.'

For example, today's recruits are drilled more heavily on close-quarters shooting, which is suited to urban warfare, and on spotting improvised explosive devices, the No. 1 killer of U.S. troops in Iraq.

They also are getting more training in how to make ethical decisions on the battlefield and how to cope with military and civilian casualties. Commanders often mention the importance of junior Marines making the right decisions, particularly amid high-stress urban warfare in Iraq." (Here.)

-tdr

Technorati: Iraq

Torture Or No Torture?

2007-03-21T21:19:00.000-07:00

This Associated Press story describes the findings of a Red Cross report on treatment of terrorists detained and interrogated by the CIA in secret prisons. The terrorists were interviewed by the The Red Cross and given the opportunity to describe their conditions of confinement and the interrogation techniques employed on them.

"The Red Cross said the techniques reported by the 14 prisoners, including sleep deprivation and the use of forced standing and other 'stress positions,' were particularly harsh when used together. The prisoners were transferred from CIA custody to the U.S. detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in September.
The CIA's detention methods were designed to make detainees more likely to talk during interrogation. Human rights organizations say the CIA's extreme detention conditions and its coercive questioning techniques constitute torture.
The report is the first independent accounting of the detainees' allegations against the CIA since its detention and interrogation program began in 2002." (Here.)

Notice anything that the detainees did not describe about the treatment they received? That's right, no allegations of real torture techniques, specifically, waterboarding.

Not to worry, the reporter helpfully inserts a description of the technique near the end of the story in a paragraph that confuses more than clarifies.

"Widely reported interrogation practices included openhanded slapping, induced hypothermia, sleep deprivation and – perhaps most controversially – waterboarding. In that technique, a detainee is made to feel he is drowning."

It's impossible to tell from this paragraph whether the detainees claimed these techniques were used against them, or if they are simply techniques that have been widely reported in the media and included in this story as a smear.

-tdr

Technorati: War, Terrorism, Torture.

Ginsberg

2007-03-11T21:12:00.000-07:00

(1990 - 3/5/2007.)

Netflix Deliveries Are Slow, Slow, Slow.

2007-01-27T22:48:00.000-08:00

The delivery time for movies has really gotten bad. I've been a Netflix customer since October 2002. DVDs used to arrive at Netflix the day after I mailed them back and I'd get a new DVD the day after. No longer.

Now, it routinely takes 2-3 days for a DVD to arrive at Netflix's site. Last week I returned a movie on Friday, another on Saturday, and a third on Monday. All three arrived at Netflix on Wednesday. This is typical for me now. The shipping delay is becoming unacceptably long.

Here's part of the problem. The Netflix distribution sites are only open Monday through Friday. Yet the mail is delivered on Saturday. Think about that. Even the Post Office is open on Saturdays but Netflix isn't. What kind of American retail operation is closed on weekends? Netflix should be open on Saturdays to receive and ship DVDs. That they aren't is positively un-American.

-tdr

Technorati: netflix.

Jack Bauer's Black Sheep: Baa Baa Humbug.

2007-01-22T23:45:00.001-08:00

Okay, 24 is now officially a joke.

The Cyborg Master of 24, who's been pulling major strings as a bad guy for two seasons now, turns out to be Jack's brother. The brother's wife still loves Jack. Her son is probably not her husband's but is instead her love child with Jack. As if these family dysfunctions weren't enough, Jack's estranged dad may be helping the terrorists.

Meanwhile, back at the White House, the President is in way over his head and his advisors spout insufferable speechettes that sound as if they were written by high school political science students.

On the plus side, Jack is completely out of control this season, and the Islamist Jihadis still have several nukes left and 19 hours left to blow them up real good.

-tdr

Technorati: 24.

TV Is King.

2007-01-21T23:00:00.000-08:00

The new television season is starting up strong.

24 got things off to a fantastic start last week with four hours of non-stop action and thrills. In a concession to the real world this season's terrorists are Islamist Arabs, including a sleeper terrorist. Not to worry, however, previews for tomorrow's episode showed Jack pushing around one of the Cyborg Masters (sans bluetooth earpiece) from last season. The real villians of 24 may yet turn out to be white international businessmen pushing pawns around for megabucks.

And tonight, Battlestar Galactica returned. For the first time in a long while, the producers dropped their artistic and social commentary pretensions to give us a straightforward science fiction TV show about humans far away from Earth in great big cool spaceships fleeing from killer androids and robots. Thank the gods!

-tdr

The Jack Bauer Neck Pinch.

2007-01-14T21:15:00.000-08:00

Of all the ways 24's writers have devised for Jack Bauer to kill bad guys, tonight's Dracula imitation is the funniest. It was laugh out loud funny when Bauer, all tied up, strapped to a chair, and helpless, leaned over, bit a hapless terrorist in the neck, lifted a key from the guard's dead body, and freed himself. Bauer's escape was truly worthy of 24's status as an adult version of the old Saturday morning serial.

-tdr

Technorati: 24.

Look Out Satan, Here Comes Saddam!

2006-12-29T19:24:00.000-08:00

According to Al Jazeera unconfirmed reports out of Iraq claim that Saddam Hussein has been executed. (Here.) Sweet! Congratulations to the Iraqi people on doing with their former dictator what a farcical UN tribunal was unable to do with Slobodan Milosevic: mete out swift and appropriate justice.

This has been a good week for America and our allies and a bad week for our enemies. Ethiopia routs the Islamists in Somalia and Iraq executes the Butcher of Baghdad. Maybe these are signs of hope for better times in 2007.

-tdr

Technorati: Iraq, war, terrorism.

No Way For Padres To Pass LaRussa In 2007 Playoffs.

2006-12-27T19:12:00.000-08:00

The San Diego Padres can't get past Tony LaRussa in the playoffs. At the recent season-ticket holder's rally, Padres management implored the fans to withhold judgment for now. Both Sandy Alderson and Kevin Towers pointed out that the core players who led the Padres to victory in 2006 didn't join the team in trades and free-agent signings until January.

With that in mind, Towers better have some blockbuster deals in the pipeline. Today's San Diego Union-Tribune has an article that floats a trial balloon about that has Termel Sledge starting in left field and batting leadoff. (Here.) So much for going after a power-hitting outfielder.

This is the lineup that's supposed to get the Padres past LaRussa and the first round of the playoffs:

1. Termel Sledge, LF
2. Marcus Giles, 2B
3. Brian Giles, RF
4. Adrian Gonzales, 1B
5. Mike Cameron, CF
6. Kevin Kouzmanoff or Russell Branyan, 3B
7. Josh Bard, C
8. Khalil Greene, SS

This trial balloon won't fly.

Sledge may have success in the minor leagues as a leadoff hitter but he hasn't duplicated that success against major league pitching. Moreover, what the Padres really need in the lineup is a right-handed power-hitting outfielder. Alderson admitted as much at the season-ticket holder rally last month.

Marcus Giles is fine batting second but his brother is no longer a number 3 hitter. He doesn't drive the ball the way he used to and he doesn't move people along on the bases. He takes lots of walks and is an OBP machine. He should be leading off.

Gonzalez does not have the homerun pop to bat fourth but on this team no player does. If the Padres did what is necessary and went out to get a true homerun hitter, Gonzalez would be batting third.

Cameron, Kouzmanoff/Branyan and Bard are fine where they are. Greene belongs batting eighth, if for no other reason than he can't be relied upon to play an entire season. No sense putting him up in the meat of the order and really missing his bat when he inevitably goes down for a month or so. Fortunately, we've still got Geoff Blum to step in and play major league shortstop.

This team is shaping up as a disappointment. There are some really good players on the team but there are still plenty of question marks. First among them is why isn't the team spending the money management said had been freed up to sign a star performer. Instead we get rumors of interest in yesterday's superstars like Randy Johnson and David Wells. Given the Padres track record, I'm predicting that Sammy Sosa will be starting in left field and batting cleanup when the season begins.

-tdr

Republished once for editing.

Technorati: baseball, mlb, Padres.

How Far Should We Go In Fighting Islamism At Home?

2006-12-26T07:39:00.000-08:00

Daniel Pipes recently blogged about a survey of the attitudes of some American Muslims who attended an Islamic conference. (Here.) The question below and its subparts elicited strong negative answers, as the numbers reveal.

It would be interesting to poll the Democratic Party's leadership for their answers.

15. Is it justifiable for the U.S. government to do any of the following in an attempt to prevent terrorist attacks in America:

a. taking religion and ethnicity into account as one factor when deciding whom to interview and search at airports?
Yes 37
No 258
Undecided 12

b. monitoring activities at American mosques?
Yes 43
No 255
Undecided 9

c. listening to phone calls of people in America whom the government claims are connected in some way with Al Qaeda?
Yes 64
No 232
Undecided 11

d. having an informer pretend to support or encourage violence against America, to see if the targeted Muslims will decide to attack American targets?
Yes 35
No 258
Undecided 14

e. monitoring Muslim charities in America, in the hopes of preventing funding for possible terrorist attacks?
Yes 52
No 242
Undecided 13

f. focusing Immigration & Customs Enforcement resources on deporting Muslim illegal aliens, who have not been convicted of terrorism, in the hopes of disrupting possible Al Qaeda attacks?
Yes 29
No 263
Undecided 15

g. allowing Muslim illegal aliens to stay in America if they agree to work as informants, monitoring the Muslim community for the government?
Yes 21
No 277
Undecided 9

h. torturing suspected Al Qaeda members to get information about possible planned attacks?
Yes 14
No 278
Undecided 15

I would answer "yes" to each subpart, except "h."

-tdr

Technorati: War on Terror, terrorism, islam.

War? What War?

2006-12-26T00:06:00.000-08:00

The Democratic Party has a survey at DCCC.org that asks voters how they feel about the Dims' plans when they officially take over the Congress. (Here.) The survey has to be seen to be believed.

There are 9 questions and 8 are about domestic concerns such as the minimum wage, health care, oil prices, spending, education, etc., etc., ect. There is one question about the war that asks voters whether they agree with the Dims' plan to enact all the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission.

Here's what that priceless question says: "Ensuring the safety and security of America requires that we implement the recommendations of the independent, bipartisan 9/11 Commission. We will move quickly to implement the Commission’s recommendations."

I feel safer already. And more secure.

The survey has a space at the end for personal comments. Here's mine:

"Hey, how about supporting pro-active measures in fighting the war on Islamist Jihad. This 9/11 commission stuff is all about being defensive. The only way we can beat these guys is by keeping them off balance by being on the attack. Support aggressive actions in surveillance, in disrupting financing, in undermining regimes that support terrorsts, like Syria's and Iran's and others, support the classification of captured foreign terrorists as illegal enemy combatants triable in special military commissions, stop the focus on getting the troops out of Iraq and change the focus to supporting the mission of the troops and demanding that the administration do whatever it takes to achieve victory. In other words, get serious about fighting our enemy. Do all that, and I could care less what you do on the less important domestic issues."

Not holding my breath.

-tdr

Technorati: terrorism, war, politics, Democrats.

How Iraq Hurts The War On Islamist Jihad.

2006-12-26T00:03:00.001-08:00

Opponents of the liberation of Iraq claim America's failure to catch Osama Bin Laden so far is proof that Iraq is a distraction. Not so.

The real problem with the unresolved conflict in Iraq is that it leaves the United States unable to combat Islamist insurgencies when they crop up elsewhere. Ethiopia shouldn't have to be leading the fight against the Islamists in Somalia. (Here.) We're fortunate that Ethiopia has the ability and the will to take on the fight for us.

-tdr

Technorati: Iraq, Terrorism, War on Terror.

Happy Holy Days And Merry Christmas

2006-12-25T11:39:00.000-08:00

It's Christmas morning in San Diego and the temperature in my backyard is 82. Even better, it's a dry heat. The only semblance of a white Christmas is the occasional cloud in the light blue sky. This part of the country is paradise.

It was interesting to see another blogger using the greeting Happy Holy Days to mark this season. (Here.) I began using it last year as it recognizes the religious nature of December's holidays and is inclusive of the various faiths that populate this country. (Here.)

So Happy Holy Days everybody, Merry Christmas, and Peace on Earth to people of good will.

-tdr

Technorati: Christmas, Religion.

Apocalypto's Naked Prey.

2006-12-17T22:09:00.000-08:00

The structure of Mel Gibson's new movie, Apocalypto, bears a striking resemblance to Cornel Wilde's worthy old classic, The Naked Prey. (Here.) The plots of the two movies follow the same path: a small group of innocents in the jungle are captured by violent savages and taken to the enemy's home where they endure torture. One survivor escapes and leads his captors on a chase through the jungle.

Despite the similarity in action, the two movies have differences. Where Wilde's movie takes place in colonial Africa, Gibson's is set in pre-Columbian Central America. Where The Naked Prey never rises above the level of an action movie, Apocalypto uses the action genre to tell a story weighted with a powerful theme of damnation and salvation.

Some have criticized Apocalypto for historical inaccuracy. The Mayan Civilization died out in 900, you see, so Gibson must have made a mistake when he included a brief glimpse of Spaniards in his movie. Tell that to Francisco Hernandez de Cordoba, the leader of the first successful Spanish landing on Yucatan in 1517. He was killed by Mayans, who were still around 600 years after the end of the so-called Classical period of their civilization. (Here and here.) Others have criticized the movie for more pedantic flaws: getting Mayan buildings wrong, showing Mayans afraid of an eclipse, and exaggerating the practice of human sacrifice.

These criticisms miss the point. Apocalypto is not a cultural or historical documentary. It is not even a work of historical fiction fleshing out a story ripped from yesterday's headlines, a la Elizabeth or Braveheart. Instead Apocalypto is a work of imagination that uses an historical setting to create an alien world and portray fictitious events in order to make a point about the human tendency towards sin.

Gibson's Christian faith clearly plays a part in his development of this theme. However, the movie is no Christian propaganda movie. That is made clear by the choice the main character makes at the very end of the film.

Apocalpyto is worth a trip to the theater. Gibson's direction and photography, and the film's total immersion into an alien culture, work very well on the big screen with surround sound. And as you're watching the action unfold on the screen, with all the running and jumping and fighting, you suddenly realize that the movie is also making you think.

-tdr

Technorati: Apocalypto,
Movies.

Republished once to fix Technorati tags.

Taking A Plunge.

2006-12-16T21:30:00.000-08:00

Well, my Christmas shopping didn't end quite as planned today. The two pictures in this post show where my Subaru Forester ended up after being rear-ended by a Volvo on a freeway off-ramp at the top of an embankment.

What a wild ride. No rollover, fortunately. The other driver was able to start her car, even with its smashed front end. But rather than driving to side of the off-ramp to get out of the way, she drove away, thereby turning a mere accident into a crime. Too bad for her I was able to climb up the embankment and get her license plate number.

The Forester is a nice little car. It handled the slope really well and didn't roll over. If I have to buy a new car, it's gonna be another Forester. Or a Volvo, like the one driven by the other driver. That car took a beating but still was able to drive away and lose a witness that was following behind.

I'd like to take this moment to thank the guy, named Guy, by the way, who tried to follow the other driver and who then came back to help me out.

No serious injuries so far. Just sore muscles and lots of aches and pains. I'm self-medicating with some bourbon even now.

-tdr

Straight From The Lips Of Padres' Management.

2006-11-30T22:25:00.000-08:00

The Padres held their annual party for season ticket holders and shareholders at Petco Park this evening. The team's management shows up, talks about the team's moves, and fields questions from fans. Here's the breaking news.

Asked by a fan who the team plans to offer arbitration, General Manager Kevin Towers said the team was "leaning towards" offering arbitration to:

Chan Ho Park
Ryan Klesko
Alan Embree
Dave Roberts
Todd Walker.

The team is still deciding on whether to offer arbitration to Mike Piazza.

Towers also announced that Geoff Blum will be a Padre again in 2007. Judging from the applause of the fans, that is a popular move.

Towers also took the opportunity to dispel the bizarre rumors that Jake Peavy and Adrian Gonzalez would be traded. He blamed that rumor on a local radio sports broadcaster known as Philly Billy. Towers said Philly Billy "has the best ideas that don't make sense." That drew a big laugh from the crowd.

Towers also suggested that a big part of the stories about the team going after Barry Bonds and Manny Ramirez was intended to drive up the price that San Francisco or Los Angeles would have to pay for them.

Asked about Barry Zito, Towers pointed out that the left-hander is represented by Scott Boras. He also said that the left-handed pitcher is "atractive" but he couldn't make any promises about bringing Zito to San Diego. He acknowledged that the team should have gotten the San Diego native when he was still an amateur. He concluded by saying, "when all is said and done, we'll add pieces to our rotation." Doesn't sound like Zito will be one of those pieces.

Towers said his goal is to add more arms to the front-line starting rotation of Jake Peavy, Clay Hensley, and Chris Young. He wants more depth to join Scott Linebrink, Cla Meredith, and Trevor Hoffman. And he needs to get a second baseman to join Adrian Gonzalez, Khalil Greene, and new third baseman, Kevin Kouzmanoff, in the infield. Asked who was available for that, he said the team is looking at Ray Durham, local favorite Mark Loretta, Tony Grafanino, and Todd Walker.

As for the outfield and leadoff, he said fan favorite Dave Roberts "is not gone yet" but other than considering arbitration he didn't make it sound as if the team is pursuing Roberts. Perhaps because of something Padres CEO Sandy Alerson said about the team's need for improved hitting.

Alderson said the team "needs a couple of right-handed power hitters who can hit the ball out to left field" in Petco Park. Petco has a reputation of being a pitcher's park where homeruns are scarce. Right field and center are pretty far away. But left field is just sitting there, very close and well within reach of right-handed power hitters. Dave Roberts doesn't have that kind of power. Much as Padres fans wouldn't like it, the team would probably be better off finding a left-fielder who can hit the ball out to left field than bringing back Roberts.

The big question of the night for Padres fans involved the Josh Barfield trade. It was very clear from fan reactions that the Barfield trade wasn't popular. Finally asked a respectful question about that, Towers explained the reasoning this way.

Towers said that at every level in the minor leagues Kouzmanoff's offensive numbers were better than Barfield's. He predicted that given the same opportunity to play in the majors in 2007 that Barfield got in 2006, Kouzmanoff "will deliver." More important to the team, Kouzmanoff has the right-handed power the Padres need and he has hit homeruns at every level he's played. The team projects him to be the kind of 3, 4, or 5 hitter they need. Towers said the Padres have a future second baseman in the person of Luis Cruz and that for 2007 they will fill the void at second base with a free agent signing. His reasoning made sense and will be considered brilliant if the gamble pays off.

Which brings us back to something that Alderson said early in the evening when he confronted the issue of trades and change and fan loyalty head on. He said the team's bottom line goal is to put a better product on the field and improve over last year's performance. He said management wants to field a team the fans will love and he described how fans loved Mark Loretta and were upset to see him go, but then the fans came to love his replacement, Josh Barfield.

Alderson didn't come right out and say it this way, but in other words, sports fans, Loretta left and you got used to it. Barfield is gone and you'll get used to that too. That's true. But only if the team wins. Because winning is the only thing that matters in sports.

-tdr

Technorati: Baseball, Padres, San Diego.

No Wal-Mart For You: Not Your Father's San Diego, Anymore: Part III

2006-11-30T00:21:00.000-08:00

We are reminded once again that San Diego is no longer the Republican, pro-business, pro-developer city it once was. (Here, here, and here.) It's more Democratic than ever and the dominant special interest throwing its weight around in local politics is now Big Labor.

San Diego's City Council has a Democratic majority and the vote to ban Wal-Mart superstores, the shopping center of choice for America's working poor, was along partisan lines:

"Those supporting the ban are Democrats; those opposed are Republicans. ... A group of labor leaders and grocers proposed the ban three years ago, while pro-business organizations, including the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce, fought it." (Here.)

Although supporters claimed aesthetics and the protection of local businesses motivated the ban, this was a vote about class. Costco and membership stores are exempt from the ban even though they compete with grocery stores and are large unsightly warehouse buildings surrounded by large parking lots, just as ugly as Wal-Mart. But the middle class and people just like the City Council members shop at Costco.

America went through this crisis in capitalism before when grocery stores displaced local specialty markets and department stores displaced smaller specialized businesses. Eventually grocery stores and department stores won out and came to dominate their markets. Superstores are likely to do the same. People can only be expected to spend more money than they have to for so long until the lure of low prices wins out.

But low prices for groceries will have to wait in San Diego. Republican Mayor Jerry Sanders opposes the ban and has threatened a veto but his threat means nothing. You see, San Diego has a Paper-Tiger Mayor form of government in which a veto can be defeated by a mere majority in the City Council. It took 5 votes to enact the ban and it will only take 5 votes to defeat the mayor's veto. Where's Pete Wilson when we need him?

-tdr

Republished once to fix San Diego Union-Tribune link.

Technorati: San Diego, WalMart.

None Dare Call It Christmas.

2006-11-29T23:40:00.000-08:00

San Diego's annual Christmas celebration occurs this weekend in Balboa Park. The San Diego Union-Tribune headlines its article about the upcoming party as "Balboa Park launches 29th December Nights." (Here.)

The headline is false. This is Balboa Park's fifth year celebrating something called December Nights. For 24 years until 2002, the celebration was called Christmas on the Prado. Why the change to December Nights? "A park spokeswoman says the name is meant to reflect San Diego's diversity and the fact that events are now held all over the park, not only on the Prado." (Here.)

In reality the change was made because Balboa Park is a city-owned park and governments don't celebrate Christmas anymore. Now we celebrate December and diversity. Of course, the only reason we celebrate one of the coldest and darkest months of the year is because of Christmas. But none dare call it Christmas because diversity is a one-way street that requires the majority to suppress itself so as not to give offense. So, Happy December to you and yours.

-tdr

Technorati: Christmas, San Diego.

Thanks For Nothing, Pat Buchanan Republicans

2006-11-29T19:42:00.000-08:00

This Zogby poll shows the consequences of the Republican Party's transformation from being the party of Ronald Reagan to the party of Pat Buchanan. (Here.) The GOP's embrace of Buchanan-style nativism has alienated Hispanic voters, who until 2006 were moving towards the Republican Party. President George Bush won 40% of the Hispanic vote in 2004. The 2006 anti-immigration version of the Republican Party saw its share of Hispanic votes fall to 30%. (Here.)

Way to go, guys. It's not as if Hispanic voters are declining in numbers. Says Zogby, "Hispanics were 5% of 95 million voters in 1996, 6% of 105 million voters in 2000, and 8.5% of 122 million voters in 2004." (Here.)

Republicans are reeling and asking themselves what they did wrong to lose in 2006. Here's a thought. Maybe alienating a fast-growing segment of the electorate is a losing strategy not a winning one.

-tdr

Technorati: Immigration, Politics, Elections.

Christmas Film Favorites

2006-11-27T20:15:00.000-08:00

Now that the Christmas season has officially begun with Black Friday's celebration of shopping, it's time to list Mister Americano's favorite Christmas movies.

A Christmas Story, naturally. Mister Americano is proud to say he first saw this movie when it had just come out and he has subjected his family to watching it every year since, even when it was still only available on VHS. We've upgraded to DVD but we still watch it more than once every Christmas season. Whether we want to or not!

Bad Santa, with Billy Bob Thornton as a drunk, fornicating department store Santa, is uproariously funny. The movie pushes good taste to its breaking point but still displays some Christmas spirit. It does have a kid in it. A pathetic loser of a kid, but still a kid. If Bad Santa ever replaces A Christmas Story or It's A Wonderful Life as the most overplayed Christmas movie on cable television, you'll know that America has moved past the point of no return on its slide into cultural degradation.

-tdr

Honorable Mention: It's A Wonderful Life, of course. What would the Christmas season be without George Bailey? And all the South Park Christmas episodes. Hi de ho!

Wish List: A very Jack Bauer Christmas. 24 hours in the life of Fox's super-violent, counter-terrorism agent: 8 AM December 24th to 8 AM December 25th. Watch Jack punch and shoot his way through one shopping mall after another in a desperate last minute shopping spree that culminates in a cliffhanging opening of the gifts on Christmas morning. The final episode will be followed by a rare look at Jack's life 24 hours later as he coerces store clerks to accept returns without proper receipts. Or else.

Technorati: Christmas, Movies., 24.

Daft About The Draft.

2006-11-25T17:18:00.000-08:00

The San Diego Union Tribune does an unscientific reader poll every week. This week's poll asks readers to state whether they support reactivating the draft or keeping the military all volunteer. (Here.)

The poll is unscientific because it makes no attempt to collect answers from a representative sample of the population. Also its questions tend to be argumentative. This week's poll is no exception as the "yes" question demonstrates.

"Yes, a draft is only fair. We want our armed forces to be drawn from the entire nation, not just our poor and minority communities. And with a draft, the nation would be more cautious about using military force abroad."

The reality is that the demographics of the volunteer US military is representative of America. This is the demography as of November 2005:

"The data shows the force is more educated than the population at large. Servicemembers have high school diplomas or the general equivalency diploma. More servicemembers have some college than the typical 18- to 24-year-olds. ...

The statistics show the number of African-American servicemembers is dropping. ...

On the socioeconomic side, the military is strongly middle class ... More recruits are drawn from the middle class and fewer are coming from poorer and wealthier families. Recruits from poorer families are actually underrepresented in the military ...

Other trends are that the number of recruits from wealthier families is increasing, and the number of recruits from suburban areas has increased. This also tracks that young men and women from the middle class are serving in the military.

In fact, urban areas provide far fewer recruits as a percentage of the total population than small towns and rural areas." (Here.)

What's a lefty war opponent to do now?

-tdr

Technorati: Media, Military, Politics.