Saturday, December 31, 2005
Friday, December 30, 2005
Captions Outrageous! [Shadow of His Former Self Edition]
The above photo of U.S. Rep. John "Quick(with)draw McGraw" Murtha (Jackass-PA) comes to us from AP Photo/Lisa Kyle via Yahoo!
This contest will last approximately one week.
Good luck!
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I not only like to host photo caption contests, I like to play them, too! Be certain to check out the latest contests at these great blogs...
WILLisms
Outside the Beltway
Random Numbers, where Mr. Right took 3rd Place last week.
GOP and the City
Wizbang!
Time is running out to win a copy of Michelle Malkin's latest book! The following contest runs thru January 7th:
PUNCH
And don't forget to check out the best caption blog in the business (where your suggestions are always welcome in the comments section)...
Caption This!
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PREVIOUS PHOTO CAPTION CONTEST WINNERS:
Oh, Thank Heaven for 7/11 Edition
Fickle Finger of Fate Edition
Things Are Looking Up Edition
Rage in the Cage Edition
Not So Mellow Fellow in Yellow Edition
The Beards and the Beads Edition
Weapons of Mash Destruction Edition
You're Al I Ever Wanted Edition
His Cup Runneth Over Edition
The Eyes Have It Edition
Jeepers Veepers Edition
Huggermugger Edition
Ear's to You Edition
Heavy Medal Edition
Village of the Damned Edition
White on Rice Edition
Sunny Side Up Edition
Absentee Mallet Edition
French Tickler Edition
In Through the Out Door Edition
Frankenstein Meets Godzilla Edition
Heaven Must Be Missing an Angel Edition
Spirits of Christmas Present Edition
Dorito Bandito Edition
******************************
This post is proudly featured in...
OTB Caption Jam
Thanks for the links!
Lucky Dawg News
Argghhh!
THIRDWAVEDAVE
******************************
UPDATE 1/6:
This contest is now closed...
WINNERS ARE POSTED HERE!
New contest is HERE!
Thank you all for playing!
Captions Outrageous! Winners [Dorito Bandito Edition]
Announcing the winners of the 24th ever Right Place Photo Caption Contest!
Thank you to one and all who participated!
Presenting the top twenty captions for this picture from Stefan Zaklin/Pool/Reuters via Yahoo!
#20: "...They would only give me Dasani, no Evian. I tell you, it is sheer torture to drink that stuff!"
cahmd
#19: Before his overthrow, Saddam was one of the two world leaders who could simultaneously belch and sign the alphabet, the other being Gerhard Schroeder.
V the K
#18: "Excuse me, Your Honor, did you just say, 'I sentence you to death'? Ramsey, come over here a second, will you? A little closer, if you don't mind."
D. Carter
#17: "So, I call Kofi on the phone and say, 'Hey! I send you UN boys bags an' bags of money and all I get for Christmas is this cheap suit?'"
SJJ
#16: "Hello, my name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father: prepare to die."
Hoodlumman
#15: "Hey, you want to talk torture? Just look at this suit they gave me to wear for court appearances! Right off the rack at J.C. Penney's: polyester/wool blend, stingy lapels, and three - count 'em, THREE - buttons on the cuff!"
D. Carter
#14: "Have you got some Maalox? Those Fritos I had before the trial gave me indigestion!"
JannyMae
#13: "I've been to Hell and back! Only two rations of Doritos a day, and then they send me into court without a necktie? Animals!"
T.M. [aka Giacomo]
#12: "C'mere, c'mere, c'mere!!! Ya wanna see torture? Look at this suit! It's missing a button!"
don
#11: "Who wants to be the lucky one I wipe this presidential booger on?"
BCL
#10: "I'm telling you, by Allah, this is what they used to check my prostate!"
Jeanette
#9: Saddam tries to impress the court with his wicked air guitar technique.
piercello
#8: "I am NOT delusional... I AM the President of Iraq! If you don't believe me, I will take this gun and blow your friggin' head off!"
Ken
#7: "So... take me back to this s'posed 'spider hole'. If Saddam don't fit, you must acquit!"
Rodney Dill
#6: "They say that the man who represents himself has a fool for a client. Gentlemen, I AM THAT FOOL!"
Mr. Snitch!
#5: "I couldn't have ever pushed the nuclear button. My finger only goes UP. Just ask my cellmate, Mahmoud."
spacemonkey
#4: "I could not possibly have been executing my own people; I was too busy hiding my weapons of mass... Oh, crap!"
Damian G.
#3: "As my friends Harry Reid, Ted Kennedy, John Kerry and Howard Dean stated so well..."
Lorie Byrd
#2: "Don't you understand? I'm just a puppet! The REAL mastermind behind my presidency was that man in the balcony... Kahlil Rove!"
Special Ed
And the winning entry for this Caption Contest...
#1: "Hey! How come I don't get to have a purple finger?"
eeoowww
Bravo! Bravo!
Encore! Encore!
Presenting:
Captions Outrageous! [Shadow of His Former Self Edition]
Enjoy!
PREVIOUS PHOTO CAPTION CONTEST WINNERS:
Oh, Thank Heaven for 7/11 Edition
Fickle Finger of Fate Edition
Things Are Looking Up Edition
Rage in the Cage Edition
Not So Mellow Fellow in Yellow Edition
The Beards and the Beads Edition
Weapons of Mash Destruction Edition
You're Al I Ever Wanted Edition
His Cup Runneth Over Edition
The Eyes Have It Edition
Jeepers Veepers Edition
Huggermugger Edition
Ear's to You Edition
Heavy Medal Edition
Village of the Damned Edition
White on Rice Edition
Sunny Side Up Edition
Absentee Mallet Edition
French Tickler Edition
In Through the Out Door Edition
Frankenstein Meets Godzilla Edition
Heaven Must Be Missing an Angel Edition
Spirits of Christmas Present Edition
And, in case you haven't yet seen it, here are the updated overall rankings for the first 20 caption contests!!!
******************************
Thanks for the link!
Lucky Dawg News
Thank you to one and all who participated!
Presenting the top twenty captions for this picture from Stefan Zaklin/Pool/Reuters via Yahoo!
#20: "...They would only give me Dasani, no Evian. I tell you, it is sheer torture to drink that stuff!"
cahmd
#19: Before his overthrow, Saddam was one of the two world leaders who could simultaneously belch and sign the alphabet, the other being Gerhard Schroeder.
V the K
#18: "Excuse me, Your Honor, did you just say, 'I sentence you to death'? Ramsey, come over here a second, will you? A little closer, if you don't mind."
D. Carter
#17: "So, I call Kofi on the phone and say, 'Hey! I send you UN boys bags an' bags of money and all I get for Christmas is this cheap suit?'"
SJJ
#16: "Hello, my name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father: prepare to die."
Hoodlumman
#15: "Hey, you want to talk torture? Just look at this suit they gave me to wear for court appearances! Right off the rack at J.C. Penney's: polyester/wool blend, stingy lapels, and three - count 'em, THREE - buttons on the cuff!"
D. Carter
#14: "Have you got some Maalox? Those Fritos I had before the trial gave me indigestion!"
JannyMae
#13: "I've been to Hell and back! Only two rations of Doritos a day, and then they send me into court without a necktie? Animals!"
T.M. [aka Giacomo]
#12: "C'mere, c'mere, c'mere!!! Ya wanna see torture? Look at this suit! It's missing a button!"
don
#11: "Who wants to be the lucky one I wipe this presidential booger on?"
BCL
#10: "I'm telling you, by Allah, this is what they used to check my prostate!"
Jeanette
#9: Saddam tries to impress the court with his wicked air guitar technique.
piercello
#8: "I am NOT delusional... I AM the President of Iraq! If you don't believe me, I will take this gun and blow your friggin' head off!"
Ken
#7: "So... take me back to this s'posed 'spider hole'. If Saddam don't fit, you must acquit!"
Rodney Dill
#6: "They say that the man who represents himself has a fool for a client. Gentlemen, I AM THAT FOOL!"
Mr. Snitch!
#5: "I couldn't have ever pushed the nuclear button. My finger only goes UP. Just ask my cellmate, Mahmoud."
spacemonkey
#4: "I could not possibly have been executing my own people; I was too busy hiding my weapons of mass... Oh, crap!"
Damian G.
#3: "As my friends Harry Reid, Ted Kennedy, John Kerry and Howard Dean stated so well..."
Lorie Byrd
#2: "Don't you understand? I'm just a puppet! The REAL mastermind behind my presidency was that man in the balcony... Kahlil Rove!"
Special Ed
And the winning entry for this Caption Contest...
#1: "Hey! How come I don't get to have a purple finger?"
eeoowww
Bravo! Bravo!
Encore! Encore!
Presenting:
Captions Outrageous! [Shadow of His Former Self Edition]
Enjoy!
PREVIOUS PHOTO CAPTION CONTEST WINNERS:
Oh, Thank Heaven for 7/11 Edition
Fickle Finger of Fate Edition
Things Are Looking Up Edition
Rage in the Cage Edition
Not So Mellow Fellow in Yellow Edition
The Beards and the Beads Edition
Weapons of Mash Destruction Edition
You're Al I Ever Wanted Edition
His Cup Runneth Over Edition
The Eyes Have It Edition
Jeepers Veepers Edition
Huggermugger Edition
Ear's to You Edition
Heavy Medal Edition
Village of the Damned Edition
White on Rice Edition
Sunny Side Up Edition
Absentee Mallet Edition
French Tickler Edition
In Through the Out Door Edition
Frankenstein Meets Godzilla Edition
Heaven Must Be Missing an Angel Edition
Spirits of Christmas Present Edition
And, in case you haven't yet seen it, here are the updated overall rankings for the first 20 caption contests!!!
******************************
Thanks for the link!
Lucky Dawg News
Thursday, December 29, 2005
Just Like Freddy Krueger ...
... he's baaaack.
Seriously, though, thanks to my co-bloggers, owner and operator Mr. Right, Stephen and Anna, for your support. It's the support of friends and family that gets you through any tough time.
My return post is over at Joust The Facts. I should have something of substance shortly, the lack of much that is newsworthy notwithstanding.
And I'm not even a bit miffed that Mr. Right continues to diss me in the caption contest. Not a bit.
Right. Just another case of "The Man" keepin' me down.
Seriously, though, thanks to my co-bloggers, owner and operator Mr. Right, Stephen and Anna, for your support. It's the support of friends and family that gets you through any tough time.
My return post is over at Joust The Facts. I should have something of substance shortly, the lack of much that is newsworthy notwithstanding.
And I'm not even a bit miffed that Mr. Right continues to diss me in the caption contest. Not a bit.
Right. Just another case of "The Man" keepin' me down.
Wednesday, December 28, 2005
The Destruction of Security
If you were ambivalent about the ACLU and civil liberty attorneys with their attacks on religion or their defense of the sick and depraved (namely NAMBLA) over our children, maybe this will finally change your mind. The ACLU and various "civil liberty" attorneys are filing motions and possibly civil suits against the President over information that may or may not have come from the NSA information gathering techniques. Which the liberals like to call "wiretapping."
One example of this is the case of Iyman Faris of Ohio. This man admitted that he was involved in a plot to blow up the Brooklyn Bridge, yet he now has an attorney, David B. Smith, who is filing a motion to find out if the information that led to his client's arrest was acquired through the NSA and their supposed use of illegal "wiretaps." Mr. Smith said that they are also considering a civil suit against President Bush for making Mr. Faris a target of an illegal wiretap.
Now the use of the term "wiretap" is incorrect. There were no specific taps on any specific phone of any specific person. That would be an illegal wiretap. What is really happening is a massive amount of information is being gathered by different techniques and then the information is gleaned for any references to known terrorists groups or individuals. This is how both Mr. Faris and the so-called Lakawanna Six were found out.
By filing these suits against the NSA and President Bush, these attorneys as well as many of the liberal left, including the New York Times who originally broke the story, are hoping to expose our government's information gathering techniques. Not only would this destroy one way we are being protected from terrorists, but it would also give crucial information to the terrorists. They will find out how the NSA is gathering information and they will change their ways of communicating, leaving the NSA to start all over again to try and find out information on our enemies!
This is an example of how the ACLU, civil liberty attorneys and the liberal left, through their absolute hatred of President Bush, would like to see our country fail in the war against terror. I keep thinking of the liberal left being the "Tokyo Rose" of the war on terror. Here is a little food for thought: Had this information gathering technique been in use prior to 9/11, the communications between Mohammed Atta and several of the other hijackers would have been exposed and the attack of 9/11 could very well have been stopped!
Information gathered from: Rightwing Nuthouse and Washington Post Op-Ed by David Ignatius.
One example of this is the case of Iyman Faris of Ohio. This man admitted that he was involved in a plot to blow up the Brooklyn Bridge, yet he now has an attorney, David B. Smith, who is filing a motion to find out if the information that led to his client's arrest was acquired through the NSA and their supposed use of illegal "wiretaps." Mr. Smith said that they are also considering a civil suit against President Bush for making Mr. Faris a target of an illegal wiretap.
Now the use of the term "wiretap" is incorrect. There were no specific taps on any specific phone of any specific person. That would be an illegal wiretap. What is really happening is a massive amount of information is being gathered by different techniques and then the information is gleaned for any references to known terrorists groups or individuals. This is how both Mr. Faris and the so-called Lakawanna Six were found out.
By filing these suits against the NSA and President Bush, these attorneys as well as many of the liberal left, including the New York Times who originally broke the story, are hoping to expose our government's information gathering techniques. Not only would this destroy one way we are being protected from terrorists, but it would also give crucial information to the terrorists. They will find out how the NSA is gathering information and they will change their ways of communicating, leaving the NSA to start all over again to try and find out information on our enemies!
This is an example of how the ACLU, civil liberty attorneys and the liberal left, through their absolute hatred of President Bush, would like to see our country fail in the war against terror. I keep thinking of the liberal left being the "Tokyo Rose" of the war on terror. Here is a little food for thought: Had this information gathering technique been in use prior to 9/11, the communications between Mohammed Atta and several of the other hijackers would have been exposed and the attack of 9/11 could very well have been stopped!
Information gathered from: Rightwing Nuthouse and Washington Post Op-Ed by David Ignatius.
Monday, December 26, 2005
Saturday, December 24, 2005
MERRY CHRISTMAS...
...from The Right Place!
God bless us, everyone!
[Christmas decorations borrowed from HERE.]
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Thanks for the links!
Freedom Folks
Marathon Pundit
God bless us, everyone!
[Christmas decorations borrowed from HERE.]
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Thanks for the links!
Freedom Folks
Marathon Pundit
Friday, December 23, 2005
'Round the 'Sphere: Christmas Weekend 2005 Edition
Other People's Funny
The Man and Flip team up on The [Unofficial] Not For Tourists Guide to NYC - Strike Edition at GOP and the City [Crossposted at Suitably Flip]
Buckley F. Williams gives us TNOYF's Guide To Dealing With Your Family During Christmas: Part I and Part II (with Part III pending) at The Nose on Your Face
In the latest of a continuing series, Stew Magoo gets even with another telemarketer in Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing Riiiiiiing
V the K has a new version of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Bush style!
Carnival Carnivale
Set sail on the Carnival of Comedy #34 at IMAO
Carnival of the Clueless #26 at Right Wing Nut House
Carnival of Satire #14 at the skwib
The First Annual Carnival of Christmas at Adam's Blog
Carnival of the Vanities #170 at Ravenwood's Universe
Bonfire of the Vanities #129 at Red Guy in a Blue State
Carnival of the Insanities #18 at Dr. Sanity
Carnival of Liberty #25 at Searchlight Crusade
A little bit older, but think of them like fine wine or really nasty cheese...
Carnival of Crazy #12 at File It Under...
Carnival of Classiness #28 at WILLisms
Reader Participation Dept.
Help Mr. Snitch pick out the best posts of the year by clicking the icon below!
Merry Christmas, everybody!
The Man and Flip team up on The [Unofficial] Not For Tourists Guide to NYC - Strike Edition at GOP and the City [Crossposted at Suitably Flip]
Buckley F. Williams gives us TNOYF's Guide To Dealing With Your Family During Christmas: Part I and Part II (with Part III pending) at The Nose on Your Face
In the latest of a continuing series, Stew Magoo gets even with another telemarketer in Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing Riiiiiiing
V the K has a new version of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Bush style!
Carnival Carnivale
Set sail on the Carnival of Comedy #34 at IMAO
Carnival of the Clueless #26 at Right Wing Nut House
Carnival of Satire #14 at the skwib
The First Annual Carnival of Christmas at Adam's Blog
Carnival of the Vanities #170 at Ravenwood's Universe
Bonfire of the Vanities #129 at Red Guy in a Blue State
Carnival of the Insanities #18 at Dr. Sanity
Carnival of Liberty #25 at Searchlight Crusade
A little bit older, but think of them like fine wine or really nasty cheese...
Carnival of Crazy #12 at File It Under...
Carnival of Classiness #28 at WILLisms
Reader Participation Dept.
Help Mr. Snitch pick out the best posts of the year by clicking the icon below!
Merry Christmas, everybody!
A Quiz
I'm "afraid," it's true. I run away. I run away. (Sorry Mr. Right, it was too good to pass up. Monty Python...love it!)
When danger reared its ugly head, he bravely turned
his tail and fled!
What Monty Python Character are you?
brought to you by Quizilla
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ED. NOTE:
I know you are, but what am I?
Well, u-- um, can we come up and have a look?
What Monty Python Character are you?
brought to you by Quizilla
Bow down before your king!
Does this post now qualify as a remake of Anna & the King?
- MR. RIGHT
When danger reared its ugly head, he bravely turned
his tail and fled!
What Monty Python Character are you?
brought to you by Quizilla
******************************
ED. NOTE:
I know you are, but what am I?
Well, u-- um, can we come up and have a look?
What Monty Python Character are you?
brought to you by Quizilla
Bow down before your king!
Does this post now qualify as a remake of Anna & the King?
- MR. RIGHT
Captions Outrageous! [Dorito Bandito Edition]
The above photo comes to us from Stefan Zaklin/Pool/Reuters via Yahoo!
This contest will last approximately one week.
Good luck!
******************************
I not only like to host photo caption contests, I like to play them, too! Be certain to check out the latest contests at these great blogs...
Outside the Beltway
Random Numbers, where Mr. Right came in 3rd Place last week!
GOP and the City
Wizbang!
Held-over for another week due to the holidays and the move to a new home:
WILLisms
There is still time to win a copy of Michelle Malkin's latest book:
PUNCH
And just for you photoshoppers out there, why not try Bullwinkle's Mooseads Contest:
The Bullwinkle Blog
******************************
PREVIOUS PHOTO CAPTION CONTEST WINNERS:
Oh, Thank Heaven for 7/11 Edition
Fickle Finger of Fate Edition
Things Are Looking Up Edition
Rage in the Cage Edition
Not So Mellow Fellow in Yellow Edition
The Beards and the Beads Edition
Weapons of Mash Destruction Edition
You're Al I Ever Wanted Edition
His Cup Runneth Over Edition
The Eyes Have It Edition
Jeepers Veepers Edition
Huggermugger Edition
Ear's to You Edition
Heavy Medal Edition
Village of the Damned Edition
White on Rice Edition
Sunny Side Up Edition
Absentee Mallet Edition
French Tickler Edition
In Through the Out Door Edition
Frankenstein Meets Godzilla Edition
Heaven Must Be Missing an Angel Edition
Spirits of Christmas Present Edition
And, in case you haven't yet seen it, here are the updated overall rankings for the first 20 caption contests!!!
******************************
This post is proudly featured in...
OTB Caption Jam, where links to more caption contests await!
Thanks for the links!
Lorie Byrd at PoliPundit
Chris at Lucky Dawg News
******************************
UPDATE 12/30:
This contest is now closed...
WINNERS ARE POSTED HERE!
New contest is HERE!
Thank you all for playing!
Captions Outrageous! Winners [Spirits of Christmas Present Edition]
Announcing the winners of the 23rd ever Right Place Photo Caption Contest!
Thank you to one and all who participated!
Presenting the top "twelf" captions for this picture from REUTERS/Seth Wenig via Yahoo!
#12: "It's dead in here! Where are the ho-ho-ho's?"
McGehee
#11: Just fired by the store manager, Earl thought to himself: "What friggin' Santa says, 'Happy Holidays'? Crap! I'm a casualty of the War on Christmas."
Maggie
#10: "No, really... watch! Every time a bell rings, Santa takes another slug of whiskey!"
Songbird
#9: Santa realized he was running low on drinkin' money, so he sold the list of bad girls for $100.
V the K
#8: After the "Missing Toy Fiasco of 1912", Santa always made Ireland his last stop of the night.
Hoodlumman
#7: Local police go undercover to nab underage drinkers.
John Ruberry
#6: Guy on left: "So then, this twelve-pointer appeared right in front of me -- almost like he had just come down out of the sky! Naturally, I took him down in one shot. We had to paint over that red nose, but we finally got him mounted and hung over the fireplace, just in time for the holidays."
Songbird
#5: Santa felt a twinge of guilt for letting the bar patrons toss his Elves, but the little buggers deserved it for what they did to Prancer, Dancer and Vixen.
spacemonkey
#4: "Rudolph is sick, so Santa is working on his own red nose."
don
#3: "It's been like this every Christmas for the last 5 years. After visiting 15 Old House Lane, he comes in here muttering something about ponies, midgets, and the low quality of cigars left for him."
Rodney Dill
#2: "'You'll love the job,' my high school guidance counselor said. 'See the world,' she said. 'Bring joy to millions of children!' Yeah, but she didn't say anything about the price of reindeer feed, and just let HER try to get the members of Elves Local 197 to clean out the stables! And can I step out in a nice, pin-striped, double-breasted suit? Noooooo, I gotta wear a red pup tent and a funnel-shaped hat! And no Grecian Formula for you, Mr. Claus! Geez, I hate retail!"
D. Carter
And the winning entry for this Caption Contest...
#1: Santa's drinking problem was traced to that fateful night he went down the chimney at Nancy Pelosi's house and found her waiting by the fireplace in a see-through teddy.
V the K
Bravo! Bravo!
Encore! Encore!
Presenting:
Captions Outrageous! [Dorito Bandito Edition]
Enjoy!
PREVIOUS PHOTO CAPTION CONTEST WINNERS:
Oh, Thank Heaven for 7/11 Edition
Fickle Finger of Fate Edition
Things Are Looking Up Edition
Rage in the Cage Edition
Not So Mellow Fellow in Yellow Edition
The Beards and the Beads Edition
Weapons of Mash Destruction Edition
You're Al I Ever Wanted Edition
His Cup Runneth Over Edition
The Eyes Have It Edition
Jeepers Veepers Edition
Huggermugger Edition
Ear's to You Edition
Heavy Medal Edition
Village of the Damned Edition
White on Rice Edition
Sunny Side Up Edition
Absentee Mallet Edition
French Tickler Edition
In Through the Out Door Edition
Frankenstein Meets Godzilla Edition
Heaven Must Be Missing an Angel Edition
And, in case you haven't yet seen it, here are the updated overall rankings for the first 20 caption contests!!!
******************************
Thanks for the link!
Chris at Lucky Dawg News
Thank you to one and all who participated!
Presenting the top "twelf" captions for this picture from REUTERS/Seth Wenig via Yahoo!
#12: "It's dead in here! Where are the ho-ho-ho's?"
McGehee
#11: Just fired by the store manager, Earl thought to himself: "What friggin' Santa says, 'Happy Holidays'? Crap! I'm a casualty of the War on Christmas."
Maggie
#10: "No, really... watch! Every time a bell rings, Santa takes another slug of whiskey!"
Songbird
#9: Santa realized he was running low on drinkin' money, so he sold the list of bad girls for $100.
V the K
#8: After the "Missing Toy Fiasco of 1912", Santa always made Ireland his last stop of the night.
Hoodlumman
#7: Local police go undercover to nab underage drinkers.
John Ruberry
#6: Guy on left: "So then, this twelve-pointer appeared right in front of me -- almost like he had just come down out of the sky! Naturally, I took him down in one shot. We had to paint over that red nose, but we finally got him mounted and hung over the fireplace, just in time for the holidays."
Songbird
#5: Santa felt a twinge of guilt for letting the bar patrons toss his Elves, but the little buggers deserved it for what they did to Prancer, Dancer and Vixen.
spacemonkey
#4: "Rudolph is sick, so Santa is working on his own red nose."
don
#3: "It's been like this every Christmas for the last 5 years. After visiting 15 Old House Lane, he comes in here muttering something about ponies, midgets, and the low quality of cigars left for him."
Rodney Dill
#2: "'You'll love the job,' my high school guidance counselor said. 'See the world,' she said. 'Bring joy to millions of children!' Yeah, but she didn't say anything about the price of reindeer feed, and just let HER try to get the members of Elves Local 197 to clean out the stables! And can I step out in a nice, pin-striped, double-breasted suit? Noooooo, I gotta wear a red pup tent and a funnel-shaped hat! And no Grecian Formula for you, Mr. Claus! Geez, I hate retail!"
D. Carter
And the winning entry for this Caption Contest...
#1: Santa's drinking problem was traced to that fateful night he went down the chimney at Nancy Pelosi's house and found her waiting by the fireplace in a see-through teddy.
V the K
Bravo! Bravo!
Encore! Encore!
Presenting:
Captions Outrageous! [Dorito Bandito Edition]
Enjoy!
PREVIOUS PHOTO CAPTION CONTEST WINNERS:
Oh, Thank Heaven for 7/11 Edition
Fickle Finger of Fate Edition
Things Are Looking Up Edition
Rage in the Cage Edition
Not So Mellow Fellow in Yellow Edition
The Beards and the Beads Edition
Weapons of Mash Destruction Edition
You're Al I Ever Wanted Edition
His Cup Runneth Over Edition
The Eyes Have It Edition
Jeepers Veepers Edition
Huggermugger Edition
Ear's to You Edition
Heavy Medal Edition
Village of the Damned Edition
White on Rice Edition
Sunny Side Up Edition
Absentee Mallet Edition
French Tickler Edition
In Through the Out Door Edition
Frankenstein Meets Godzilla Edition
Heaven Must Be Missing an Angel Edition
And, in case you haven't yet seen it, here are the updated overall rankings for the first 20 caption contests!!!
******************************
Thanks for the link!
Chris at Lucky Dawg News
Some Sad News
One of our fellow bloggers here at The Right Place, T.M. Ergin, also known to many as Giacomo of Joust the Facts, wrote to me to let me know that his Father passed away suddenly earlier this week.
Please remember T.M. and his family in your thoughts and prayers.
He has promised to return to blogging sometime soon.
Please remember T.M. and his family in your thoughts and prayers.
He has promised to return to blogging sometime soon.
Wednesday, December 21, 2005
A Politically Correct "Greeting" Card
UPDATE: Received a most interesting greeting from the in-laws of the very liberal persuasion. It is a picture of the family in full Halloween regalia, states "Merry Christmas & Happy Solstice" on the front and the inside begins with "In this darker time of year..." It is a pretty amusing card and came along with a CD of the family singing several Christmas carols...yes, Christmas carols! It is just so typical of them! We all get along great as long as we stay away from the topics of religion and politics! MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!
Preston at Six Meat Buffet has just the right greeting for you to send to that annoying family member who is the loud lunatic liberal at the dinner table:
There is much more and it will, at the very least, give you a good chuckle, just try not to snort your beverage onto your computer...that would be bad!
I know that each and every one of you knows or is secretly related (the "skeleton" in your family closet) to someone that this greeting would fit to perfection. I could certainly see some of my family clearly through the entire greeting! See, it's okay, you can admit it, it'll do you some good! Now, don't you feel better?
******************************
Thanks for the link!
MN Blogger
Preston at Six Meat Buffet has just the right greeting for you to send to that annoying family member who is the loud lunatic liberal at the dinner table:
“Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, our best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low-stress, non-addictive, gender-neutral celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasion and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all. We also wish you a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year 2006, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make America great..."
There is much more and it will, at the very least, give you a good chuckle, just try not to snort your beverage onto your computer...that would be bad!
I know that each and every one of you knows or is secretly related (the "skeleton" in your family closet) to someone that this greeting would fit to perfection. I could certainly see some of my family clearly through the entire greeting! See, it's okay, you can admit it, it'll do you some good! Now, don't you feel better?
******************************
Thanks for the link!
MN Blogger
Tuesday, December 20, 2005
More Frequent Flyers Club Mileage Awarded!
Awhile back, while tweaking my blogroll for the 500th time (or so it seemed), I thought it might be a cool idea to recognize and thank those with blogs of their own who were regular visitors, commenters, e-mailers and/or linkers to this blog. It is, after all, due to such folks that we continue to grow and thrive here!
And so, the Frequent Flyers Club was born!
Then, about a month and a half later, I expanded the club to include a few folks I had missed the first time around, as well as some newer friends who had started to hang around here more often.
As they say, membership has its perks! First, you get a prime location at the top of my blogroll, highlighted with bold print. Next, I post a link-loaded write-up like this one, hoping it might get some of you a few extra hits from readers who might like to check out something new. I also like to encourage all my previous and new inductees to visit each other's blogs and check them out. After all, if you all like to hang around here, you must have something in common, right? Also, I tend to check in on my FFC blogs a little more often than I otherwise might have before.
This time, I've made a few more changes by introducing a "Vanguard" for folks to whom I owe so very much for the success of this blog. I also started listing bloggers by name and home state (or province, or even country where applicable) along with the links to their blogs. I also added all of the blogs from this special area back into my standard blogroll as well, just in case it might help get you noticed by someone somewhere along the line.
The new inductees are as follows...
CJ [aka Capitalist Infidel & Rumplemintz] (NC)
VRWC #1 Member
The Museum of Left Wing Lunacy
CJ was an early acquaintance at PoliPundit as well as at Jayson Javitz's sorely missed solo blog, Political Vice Squad. He used to live just up the road from me here in Illinois until his recent move to North Carolina. His own blog, VRWC #1 Member, is one I used to frequent quite a bit, and he would pop in here, too, from time to time. This induction is way overdue, but we did seem to lose touch awhile back. Welcome aboard, CJ. Hopefully, we can start running into each other more often again!
Damian G. (NY)
Conservathink
Damian G. has been a regular contributor to our weekly photo caption contests for some time now. Thank you, sir!
Jake Jacobsen (IL)
Freedom Folks
A fellow Illinois blogger who has recently become a frequent commenter and has linked here a number of times already. Thanks!
Jayson Javitz (CA)
PoliPundit
A huge oversight not to put him among the original class, as he was one of the people who most influenced my own desire to start blogging! Since I had already put PoliPundit in the FFC under the most gracious Lorie Byrd, and Jayson's solo blog, which I used to visit daily had long gone away, I failed to properly thank another blogger who has always been kind to me and whom I have conversed with frequently on the threads of PoliPundit and Political Vice Squad, and even, on a few occasions, through e-mail! Welcome, JJ! And thanks for everything!
John, the Armorer
Argghhh! The Home of Two of Jonah's Military Guys +1
Our first full-blown FFC milblogger, John has been kind enough to link here quite frequently the last month or so. Thank you, sir! And may God bless and keep you and all of your comrades in arms, who do so much more for all of us than we can ever properly thank you for!
MN Blogger (MN)
MN Blogger
MN Blogger has become quite a regular around here in the comments and links to us all the time! Thank you, and welcome aboard!
Mr. Snitch (NJ)
Mister Snitch!
Mr. Snitch plays in our caption contests regularly and has linked to us on a couple of occasions, too! Thanks!
Omnibus Driver (IL)
Leslie's Omnibus
Leslie has been a regular visitor for some time now, and has corresponded with me by e-mail. She, too, is a Chicago area blogger. Welcome!
Mark A. Rayner (Ontario)
The Skwib
Mark has been kind enough to include a number of my regular satire pieces in his weekly Carnival of Satire. Thank you, sir!
V the K (MD)
Caption This!
The man who has all but taken over the caption contests here. Given that he has a blog of his own dedicated to funny photo captions, should that really be any surprise? Thanks for all the laughs, and welcome aboard!
More to come...
There are a number of other folks who I am keeping an eye on as well for possible inclusion in the next round of inductions, but, as always, some future inductees will likely seem to pop up out of the blue in the interim as well! If you are a frequent visitor here, and have a blog of your own, let me know of your presence via comments, e-mails and, of course, links, and you can join, too!
In the meantime, if you have us on your blogroll, but do not appear on ours, just let me know and I will fix that!
As always, thank you, also, to all of our previous inductees. Merry Christmas, everybody!
Right Place Contributors
Anna (OH)
A Rose by Any Other Name
Warm 'n Fuzzy Conserva-Puppies
Giacomo [aka T.M. Ergin] (NH)
Joust the Facts
The Vanguard
Lorie Byrd (NC)
Byrd Droppings
PoliPundit
Pat Curley (AZ)
Brainster's Blog
Lifelike Pundits
Rodney Dill
Outside the Beltway
Will Franklin (TX)
WILLisms
Hoodlumman (TX)
File It Under...
THIRDWAVEDAVE (CA)
THIRDWAVEDAVE
Buckley F. Williams
The Nose on Your Face
Frequent Flyers Club
The Anchoress
The Anchoress
Charles Austin (IL)
[Back to blogging again after an extended absence!]
Sine Qua Non Pundit
Basil (AL)
Basil's Blog
It's a Pundit
Pyjamas Media (nee Open Sore Media)
Bohemianlikeyou
Where Have You Gone, Ronald Reagan?
Bruce & Ferdy (IL)
The Conservative Cat
Bullwinkle (Mexico; TX expat)
The Bullwinkle Blog
Random Numbers
Chris (NM)
Lucky Dawg News
Dr. Phat Tony (AL)
Dr. Phat Tony's
Gateway Pundit (MO)
Gateway Pundit
Howie
The Jawa Report
I. Ronnie (NC)
Now That's Ironic
Jeanette (SC)
Oh How I Love Jesus
JimmyB (OH)
The Conservative UAW Guy
Kimsch (IL)
Musing Minds
Stew Magoo (GA)
Get Stewed
The Man (NY)
GOP and the City
Rick Moran (IL)
Right Wing Nut House
Kitty Myers (NY)
Kitty Litter
Lifelike Pundits
Betsy Newmark (NC)
Betsy's Page
Newton (TX)
Oh How I Love Jesus
Pluto's Dad (IL)
Eyes on the Ball News
Rob B. (TX)
File It Under...
John Ruberry (IL)
Marathon Pundit
Illinois Marathon Pundit
Dr. Pat Santy (MI)
Dr. Sanity
Dr. Rusty Shackleford
The Jawa Report
Chris Short (CO)
Conservative Thinking
The Jawa Report
Headmistress SondraK
Knowledge Is Power
Spacemonkey (AL)
The Flying Space Monkey Chronicles
IMAO
Don Surber (WV)
Don Surber
It's a Pundit
Windhamite (OH)
The Windhamite
Inactive, but not forgotten...
Oregano
Cafe Oregano
Charly Goehring (CA)
Reformed Politics
******************************
Thanks for the links!
Argghhh!
Basil's Blog
And so, the Frequent Flyers Club was born!
Then, about a month and a half later, I expanded the club to include a few folks I had missed the first time around, as well as some newer friends who had started to hang around here more often.
As they say, membership has its perks! First, you get a prime location at the top of my blogroll, highlighted with bold print. Next, I post a link-loaded write-up like this one, hoping it might get some of you a few extra hits from readers who might like to check out something new. I also like to encourage all my previous and new inductees to visit each other's blogs and check them out. After all, if you all like to hang around here, you must have something in common, right? Also, I tend to check in on my FFC blogs a little more often than I otherwise might have before.
This time, I've made a few more changes by introducing a "Vanguard" for folks to whom I owe so very much for the success of this blog. I also started listing bloggers by name and home state (or province, or even country where applicable) along with the links to their blogs. I also added all of the blogs from this special area back into my standard blogroll as well, just in case it might help get you noticed by someone somewhere along the line.
The new inductees are as follows...
VRWC #1 Member
The Museum of Left Wing Lunacy
CJ was an early acquaintance at PoliPundit as well as at Jayson Javitz's sorely missed solo blog, Political Vice Squad. He used to live just up the road from me here in Illinois until his recent move to North Carolina. His own blog, VRWC #1 Member, is one I used to frequent quite a bit, and he would pop in here, too, from time to time. This induction is way overdue, but we did seem to lose touch awhile back. Welcome aboard, CJ. Hopefully, we can start running into each other more often again!
Conservathink
Damian G. has been a regular contributor to our weekly photo caption contests for some time now. Thank you, sir!
Freedom Folks
A fellow Illinois blogger who has recently become a frequent commenter and has linked here a number of times already. Thanks!
PoliPundit
A huge oversight not to put him among the original class, as he was one of the people who most influenced my own desire to start blogging! Since I had already put PoliPundit in the FFC under the most gracious Lorie Byrd, and Jayson's solo blog, which I used to visit daily had long gone away, I failed to properly thank another blogger who has always been kind to me and whom I have conversed with frequently on the threads of PoliPundit and Political Vice Squad, and even, on a few occasions, through e-mail! Welcome, JJ! And thanks for everything!
Argghhh! The Home of Two of Jonah's Military Guys +1
Our first full-blown FFC milblogger, John has been kind enough to link here quite frequently the last month or so. Thank you, sir! And may God bless and keep you and all of your comrades in arms, who do so much more for all of us than we can ever properly thank you for!
MN Blogger
MN Blogger has become quite a regular around here in the comments and links to us all the time! Thank you, and welcome aboard!
Mister Snitch!
Mr. Snitch plays in our caption contests regularly and has linked to us on a couple of occasions, too! Thanks!
Leslie's Omnibus
Leslie has been a regular visitor for some time now, and has corresponded with me by e-mail. She, too, is a Chicago area blogger. Welcome!
The Skwib
Mark has been kind enough to include a number of my regular satire pieces in his weekly Carnival of Satire. Thank you, sir!
Caption This!
The man who has all but taken over the caption contests here. Given that he has a blog of his own dedicated to funny photo captions, should that really be any surprise? Thanks for all the laughs, and welcome aboard!
More to come...
There are a number of other folks who I am keeping an eye on as well for possible inclusion in the next round of inductions, but, as always, some future inductees will likely seem to pop up out of the blue in the interim as well! If you are a frequent visitor here, and have a blog of your own, let me know of your presence via comments, e-mails and, of course, links, and you can join, too!
In the meantime, if you have us on your blogroll, but do not appear on ours, just let me know and I will fix that!
As always, thank you, also, to all of our previous inductees. Merry Christmas, everybody!
Right Place Contributors
A Rose by Any Other Name
Warm 'n Fuzzy Conserva-Puppies
Joust the Facts
The Vanguard
Byrd Droppings
PoliPundit
Brainster's Blog
Lifelike Pundits
Outside the Beltway
WILLisms
File It Under...
THIRDWAVEDAVE
The Nose on Your Face
Frequent Flyers Club
The Anchoress
[Back to blogging again after an extended absence!]
Sine Qua Non Pundit
Basil's Blog
It's a Pundit
Pyjamas Media (nee Open Sore Media)
Where Have You Gone, Ronald Reagan?
The Conservative Cat
The Bullwinkle Blog
Random Numbers
Lucky Dawg News
Dr. Phat Tony's
Gateway Pundit
The Jawa Report
Now That's Ironic
Oh How I Love Jesus
The Conservative UAW Guy
Musing Minds
Get Stewed
GOP and the City
Right Wing Nut House
Kitty Litter
Lifelike Pundits
Betsy's Page
Oh How I Love Jesus
Eyes on the Ball News
File It Under...
Marathon Pundit
Illinois Marathon Pundit
Dr. Sanity
The Jawa Report
Conservative Thinking
The Jawa Report
Knowledge Is Power
The Flying Space Monkey Chronicles
IMAO
Don Surber
It's a Pundit
The Windhamite
Inactive, but not forgotten...
Cafe Oregano
Reformed Politics
******************************
Thanks for the links!
Argghhh!
Basil's Blog
Monday, December 19, 2005
Christmas Song Parodies
Jake Jacobsen and The Bald Chick have been busy over at Freedom Folks. It seems that they have created their own versions of a couple of familiar Christmas tunes.
They recorded their parodies to mp3 files over the weekend. Be sure to download them and check 'em out, they're pretty good! Jake wrote to say that if anyone has some awesome ideas to tweak them a bit, they are still open to suggestions, too! So go on over and have some fun!
They recorded their parodies to mp3 files over the weekend. Be sure to download them and check 'em out, they're pretty good! Jake wrote to say that if anyone has some awesome ideas to tweak them a bit, they are still open to suggestions, too! So go on over and have some fun!
The Best Blog Posts of 2005!
Mister Snitch has joined the blogging awards parade with a pretty cool idea:
What were the best individual posts of this past year?
Just click on the icon below to read all about it and nominate your favorites!
What were the best individual posts of this past year?
Just click on the icon below to read all about it and nominate your favorites!
Saturday, December 17, 2005
Decisions, Decisions
An AP/Ipsos poll was recently released showing a 57% majority feel that staying in Iraq until the job is done is the correct approach. Only 36% felt that immediate withdrawal was appropriate. The 57% is a strong majority, but is down from 71% a year ago.
Something I find interesting shows up later in the story. We learn that 49% of Americans feel that the war was a mistake, which is an improvement from August (53%) but a much larger percentage than a year ago (34%).
Here's what I don't understand. A year ago the situation in Iraq was even less certain and more perilous than it is now. The Iraqi military and police were much less developed. None of the three successful votes in Iraq had taken place. The Iraqis had not ratified a constitution. The border with Syria had not been addressed. Many of the 'insurgent' strongholds had not been dispersed. Iran had not installed Ahmadinejad as President and become an even larger threat, for which a democratic Iraq as counterbalance becomes even more important.
In fact, virtually all of the factors that could influence your opinion point more away from the war being a mistake than a year ago. So why the drop in support for the war? Could it be that the MSM and Democrats have been consistently and doggedly ignoring any and all good news, and trumpeting all bad news, even going so far as to 'celebrate' the 2000th American soldier killed?
The deterioration of public opinion is much more the result of the war against the war, rather than a result of the war itself.
Something I find interesting shows up later in the story. We learn that 49% of Americans feel that the war was a mistake, which is an improvement from August (53%) but a much larger percentage than a year ago (34%).
Here's what I don't understand. A year ago the situation in Iraq was even less certain and more perilous than it is now. The Iraqi military and police were much less developed. None of the three successful votes in Iraq had taken place. The Iraqis had not ratified a constitution. The border with Syria had not been addressed. Many of the 'insurgent' strongholds had not been dispersed. Iran had not installed Ahmadinejad as President and become an even larger threat, for which a democratic Iraq as counterbalance becomes even more important.
In fact, virtually all of the factors that could influence your opinion point more away from the war being a mistake than a year ago. So why the drop in support for the war? Could it be that the MSM and Democrats have been consistently and doggedly ignoring any and all good news, and trumpeting all bad news, even going so far as to 'celebrate' the 2000th American soldier killed?
The deterioration of public opinion is much more the result of the war against the war, rather than a result of the war itself.
Captions Outrageous! [Spirits of Christmas Present Edition]
The above photo comes to us from REUTERS/Seth Wenig via Yahoo!
This contest will last approximately one week.
Good luck!
******************************
I not only like to host photo caption contests, I like to play them, too! Be certain to check out the latest contests at these great blogs...
WILLisms
Outside the Beltway, where Mr. Right got an Honorable Mention last week.
Random Numbers
GOP and the City
Wizbang!
And a very special contest this week, where you can win a copy of Michelle Malkin's latest book:
PUNCH
******************************
PREVIOUS PHOTO CAPTION CONTEST WINNERS:
Oh, Thank Heaven for 7/11 Edition
Fickle Finger of Fate Edition
Things Are Looking Up Edition
Rage in the Cage Edition
Not So Mellow Fellow in Yellow Edition
The Beards and the Beads Edition
Weapons of Mash Destruction Edition
You're Al I Ever Wanted Edition
His Cup Runneth Over Edition
The Eyes Have It Edition
Jeepers Veepers Edition
Huggermugger Edition
Ear's to You Edition
Heavy Medal Edition
Village of the Damned Edition
White on Rice Edition
Sunny Side Up Edition
Absentee Mallet Edition
French Tickler Edition
In Through the Out Door Edition
Frankenstein Meets Godzilla Edition
Heaven Must Be Missing an Angel Edition
******************************
This post is proudly featured in...
OTB Caption Jam
Thanks for the links!
Argghhh!
Lucky Dawg News
******************************
UPDATE 12/23:
This contest is now closed...
WINNERS ARE POSTED HERE!
New contest is HERE!
Thank you all for playing!
Captions Outrageous! Winners [Heaven Must Be Missing an Angel Edition]
Announcing the winners of the 22nd ever Right Place Photo Caption Contest!
First of all, I would like to thank everyone who helped make this our most successful Photo Caption Contest yet! Make sure you read the comments from the original section, as there are far too many good ones to mention them all here (though I like to think I hit the highlights)!
Second, I would like to state, for the record, that I was unaware of either the much earlier contest at Wizbang! which featured a different, but very similar picture (it dates back to March - well before I followed caption contests closely) or the concurrent contest at GOP and College which featured the same exact photo!
The only reason I know about the former is due to Wizbang's own Jay Tea leaving us a link in the comments during the contest (thanks, actually) - be sure to check it out, many, many more fun captions!
All Caption Entries: Wizbang!
Winners: Wizbang!
The only reason I know about the latter is due to a link I found to it on IMAO after I had posted my own. It, too, has some great captions, be sure to check it out as well!
All Caption Entries: GOP and College
Winners: GOP and College
I make a point of checking the five contests I link to every week before posting my own, but the GOP and College contest is either a new one or a one-off deal. I likely would have seen it earlier since I read IMAO all the time, but I have fallen woefully behind in both my reading and writing these last couple of weeks! [NOTE: Congratulations to the Great Frank J. and SarahJ (nee K) on their recent nuptials!]
Of course, it is still a happy accident that I never knew anybody else was using this picture, as it is a true gem and the responses are wonderful, so I am glad I can claim ignorance and actually went ahead and used it after all!
Enough with the mindless blather! Without further ado...
Presenting the top TWENTY (+) captions for this picture from AFP/Getty Images/File via Yahoo!...
Wait! Some bonus awards first!
The "If I Could Have Entered My Own Contest" Award:
"Yeeeeeeaaaaarrrrrrgh!" the Howard Angel screamed! Glory to the Moonbat King...
Mr. Right
The "Best Caption That Already Won Wizbang's Contest" Award:
The voices in Dean's head hold their weekly weenie roast.
D. Carter (The original author, so all due props!)
The "Mr. Right's Favorite Entry at Wizbang, Even if It Only Came in 3rd Place Over There and He Didn't Enter Here" Award:
Every time a bell rings, a moonbat gets his wings.
Tom Hanna
The "Are You Calling Him a Jerk?" Award:
"The new phone book's here! The new phone book's here! This is the kind of spontaneous publicity I need! My name in print! That really makes somebody! Things are going to start happening to me now!"
Songbird
And now, on with the countdown...
#20: Howard Dean, wearing his signature Bad Idea Jeans, explained, "Normally I wear protection, but then I thought, 'When am I gonna make it back to Haiti?'"
Will Franklin
[Lifted from an old SNL skit, IIRC]
#19: Then he did raise on high the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch, saying, "Bless this, oh Lord, that with it Thou mayest blow Thine enemies to tiny bits, in Thy mercy."
Stew
["What's he do, nibble your bum?"]
#18: The lights are on but is anyone home?
don
#17: One speech on Iraq was enough to convince Johnny Storm that he had discovered Dr. Doom's secret identity. "Flame on!"
V the K
#16: The real reason behind Howie's rise to top dog at the DNC: 'The Digital Multivac 5000 Brain Combobulator and Hairdrier.'
SJJ
#15: As Einstein had anticipated, the space-time continuum was ripped open, and the 'Good Howard Dean' stepped through the warp just in time to save the Democratic Party from the 'Bad Howard Dean': "The President is doing the right thing, and we need to stay in Iraq and finish the job!"
T.M. [aka Giacomo]
#14: "Thanks, Al. My pilot light hasn't been working since Andrew Sullivan blew in my ear."
V the K
#13: Photographic evidence proves the theory that Dean's head really did explode back in New Hampshire. Luckily for the DNC, no one noticed.
Songbird
#12: Caught on film: Dean having another (bad) idea.
spacemonkey
#11: The recipe for idiotic statements requires that the brain first be preheated to 350 degrees.
D. Carter
#10: The tiny flying saucer, finding no evidence of intelligent life, flies away.
D. Carter
#9: Rove's top secret brain control device continues to prove its value.
I. Ronnie
#8: Close Encounters of the Moonbat Kind.
Windhamite
#7: "You want me to turn around because The Mothership is right behind me? Really, Mr. Farrakhan, how stupid do you think I am?"
V the K
#6: Coming Soon: The Passion of the Dean
spacemonkey
#5: Dubya: "So... Howie's an angel? We'll see how he feels with the White House Christmas Tree shoved up his..."
Rodney Dill
#4: "... And then me and the rest of the Heaven's Gate Cult are gonna go to Mars... and Venus... and Saturn... and Neptune... and Pluto... and we're going to Alpha Centauri... and then we're going to The Crab Nebula to take back the Great Attractor! Yeeearrrrgh!!!"
V the K
#3: "Thanks for that question. Yes, I do kinda see myself as the savior of the Democratic Party."
DaveD
#2: In a yearly tradition, Howard Dean's head lice turn on their holiday lights.
Special Ed
And the winning entry for this Caption Contest...
#1: Howard hated the Iraq War! The whole Iraq War reason!
Now, please don't ask why. We all know its treason.
It could be that his head wasn't screwed on quite right.
It could be, perhaps, that his mouth was a blight.
But I think that the most likely reason of all...
May have been that his brain was two sizes too small.
Rodney Dill
[Who becomes our first ever 3 time winner!]
BONUS! Two, yes two photoshop awards this week!
First, our runner-up from Windhamite...
Next, what I think has to be the funniest one yet from our King of the Photoshops, Chris...
Bravo! Bravo! Take a bow, everyone!
Encore! Encore!
Presenting:
Captions Outrageous! [Spirits of Christmas Present Edition]
Enjoy!
PREVIOUS PHOTO CAPTION CONTEST WINNERS:
Oh, Thank Heaven for 7/11 Edition
Fickle Finger of Fate Edition
Things Are Looking Up Edition
Rage in the Cage Edition
Not So Mellow Fellow in Yellow Edition
The Beards and the Beads Edition
Weapons of Mash Destruction Edition
You're Al I Ever Wanted Edition
His Cup Runneth Over Edition
The Eyes Have It Edition
Jeepers Veepers Edition
Huggermugger Edition
Ear's to You Edition
Heavy Medal Edition
Village of the Damned Edition
White on Rice Edition
Sunny Side Up Edition
Absentee Mallet Edition
French Tickler Edition
In Through the Out Door Edition
Frankenstein Meets Godzilla Edition
And, in case you haven't yet seen it, here are the updated overall rankings for the first 20 caption contests!!!
******************************
Thanks for the links!
Lucky Dawg News
Elephants in Academia
This post is proudly featured in...
Carnival of the Clueless #26 at Right Wing Nut House
Carnival of Comedy #34 at IMAO
First of all, I would like to thank everyone who helped make this our most successful Photo Caption Contest yet! Make sure you read the comments from the original section, as there are far too many good ones to mention them all here (though I like to think I hit the highlights)!
Second, I would like to state, for the record, that I was unaware of either the much earlier contest at Wizbang! which featured a different, but very similar picture (it dates back to March - well before I followed caption contests closely) or the concurrent contest at GOP and College which featured the same exact photo!
The only reason I know about the former is due to Wizbang's own Jay Tea leaving us a link in the comments during the contest (thanks, actually) - be sure to check it out, many, many more fun captions!
All Caption Entries: Wizbang!
Winners: Wizbang!
The only reason I know about the latter is due to a link I found to it on IMAO after I had posted my own. It, too, has some great captions, be sure to check it out as well!
All Caption Entries: GOP and College
Winners: GOP and College
I make a point of checking the five contests I link to every week before posting my own, but the GOP and College contest is either a new one or a one-off deal. I likely would have seen it earlier since I read IMAO all the time, but I have fallen woefully behind in both my reading and writing these last couple of weeks! [NOTE: Congratulations to the Great Frank J. and SarahJ (nee K) on their recent nuptials!]
Of course, it is still a happy accident that I never knew anybody else was using this picture, as it is a true gem and the responses are wonderful, so I am glad I can claim ignorance and actually went ahead and used it after all!
Enough with the mindless blather! Without further ado...
Presenting the top TWENTY (+) captions for this picture from AFP/Getty Images/File via Yahoo!...
Wait! Some bonus awards first!
The "If I Could Have Entered My Own Contest" Award:
"Yeeeeeeaaaaarrrrrrgh!" the Howard Angel screamed! Glory to the Moonbat King...
Mr. Right
The "Best Caption That Already Won Wizbang's Contest" Award:
The voices in Dean's head hold their weekly weenie roast.
D. Carter (The original author, so all due props!)
The "Mr. Right's Favorite Entry at Wizbang, Even if It Only Came in 3rd Place Over There and He Didn't Enter Here" Award:
Every time a bell rings, a moonbat gets his wings.
Tom Hanna
The "Are You Calling Him a Jerk?" Award:
"The new phone book's here! The new phone book's here! This is the kind of spontaneous publicity I need! My name in print! That really makes somebody! Things are going to start happening to me now!"
Songbird
And now, on with the countdown...
#20: Howard Dean, wearing his signature Bad Idea Jeans, explained, "Normally I wear protection, but then I thought, 'When am I gonna make it back to Haiti?'"
Will Franklin
[Lifted from an old SNL skit, IIRC]
#19: Then he did raise on high the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch, saying, "Bless this, oh Lord, that with it Thou mayest blow Thine enemies to tiny bits, in Thy mercy."
Stew
["What's he do, nibble your bum?"]
#18: The lights are on but is anyone home?
don
#17: One speech on Iraq was enough to convince Johnny Storm that he had discovered Dr. Doom's secret identity. "Flame on!"
V the K
#16: The real reason behind Howie's rise to top dog at the DNC: 'The Digital Multivac 5000 Brain Combobulator and Hairdrier.'
SJJ
#15: As Einstein had anticipated, the space-time continuum was ripped open, and the 'Good Howard Dean' stepped through the warp just in time to save the Democratic Party from the 'Bad Howard Dean': "The President is doing the right thing, and we need to stay in Iraq and finish the job!"
T.M. [aka Giacomo]
#14: "Thanks, Al. My pilot light hasn't been working since Andrew Sullivan blew in my ear."
V the K
#13: Photographic evidence proves the theory that Dean's head really did explode back in New Hampshire. Luckily for the DNC, no one noticed.
Songbird
#12: Caught on film: Dean having another (bad) idea.
spacemonkey
#11: The recipe for idiotic statements requires that the brain first be preheated to 350 degrees.
D. Carter
#10: The tiny flying saucer, finding no evidence of intelligent life, flies away.
D. Carter
#9: Rove's top secret brain control device continues to prove its value.
I. Ronnie
#8: Close Encounters of the Moonbat Kind.
Windhamite
#7: "You want me to turn around because The Mothership is right behind me? Really, Mr. Farrakhan, how stupid do you think I am?"
V the K
#6: Coming Soon: The Passion of the Dean
spacemonkey
#5: Dubya: "So... Howie's an angel? We'll see how he feels with the White House Christmas Tree shoved up his..."
Rodney Dill
#4: "... And then me and the rest of the Heaven's Gate Cult are gonna go to Mars... and Venus... and Saturn... and Neptune... and Pluto... and we're going to Alpha Centauri... and then we're going to The Crab Nebula to take back the Great Attractor! Yeeearrrrgh!!!"
V the K
#3: "Thanks for that question. Yes, I do kinda see myself as the savior of the Democratic Party."
DaveD
#2: In a yearly tradition, Howard Dean's head lice turn on their holiday lights.
Special Ed
And the winning entry for this Caption Contest...
#1: Howard hated the Iraq War! The whole Iraq War reason!
Now, please don't ask why. We all know its treason.
It could be that his head wasn't screwed on quite right.
It could be, perhaps, that his mouth was a blight.
But I think that the most likely reason of all...
May have been that his brain was two sizes too small.
Rodney Dill
[Who becomes our first ever 3 time winner!]
BONUS! Two, yes two photoshop awards this week!
First, our runner-up from Windhamite...
Next, what I think has to be the funniest one yet from our King of the Photoshops, Chris...
Bravo! Bravo! Take a bow, everyone!
Encore! Encore!
Presenting:
Captions Outrageous! [Spirits of Christmas Present Edition]
Enjoy!
PREVIOUS PHOTO CAPTION CONTEST WINNERS:
Oh, Thank Heaven for 7/11 Edition
Fickle Finger of Fate Edition
Things Are Looking Up Edition
Rage in the Cage Edition
Not So Mellow Fellow in Yellow Edition
The Beards and the Beads Edition
Weapons of Mash Destruction Edition
You're Al I Ever Wanted Edition
His Cup Runneth Over Edition
The Eyes Have It Edition
Jeepers Veepers Edition
Huggermugger Edition
Ear's to You Edition
Heavy Medal Edition
Village of the Damned Edition
White on Rice Edition
Sunny Side Up Edition
Absentee Mallet Edition
French Tickler Edition
In Through the Out Door Edition
Frankenstein Meets Godzilla Edition
And, in case you haven't yet seen it, here are the updated overall rankings for the first 20 caption contests!!!
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Lucky Dawg News
Elephants in Academia
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Friday, December 16, 2005
Patience, Dear Readers (Excuses, Excuses...)
Friday was Mr. Right's birthday.
He celebrated it by going to work, coming home, shoveling snow and then working on cleaning his filthy house so that the dozen or more people coming to visit tomorrow don't see what a pig he really is. Fun. Especially scrubbing caked on bird poop off of the bird cages! And the carpet... and the walls... and the furniture...
I would have been happy with one bird. My wife decided we needed four! Plus a guinea pig, two teddybear hamsters and three aquariums full of various aquatic lifeforms. I have often joked that we need to charge admission when people come over to our avizooquarium! They're all very cute, but also very, very messy! My wife helped, of course, but only after she got home from working the second of her two jobs. We have both been so busy this week, we are way behind. It will take a Christmas miracle to whip this place into proper shape by tomorrow evening!
In spite of it all, I still owe it to all of you to put up the results of the photo contest from this week, which received a record number of entries! I also need to find a good picture for the new one. I am trying to accomplish this now, so that they are ready by morning. I only hope I can stay awake long enough to finish! If not, rest assured that I will post the goodies ASAP.
Thank you for your understanding, and Merry Christmas!
p.s., Wanna buy a bird?
He celebrated it by going to work, coming home, shoveling snow and then working on cleaning his filthy house so that the dozen or more people coming to visit tomorrow don't see what a pig he really is. Fun. Especially scrubbing caked on bird poop off of the bird cages! And the carpet... and the walls... and the furniture...
I would have been happy with one bird. My wife decided we needed four! Plus a guinea pig, two teddybear hamsters and three aquariums full of various aquatic lifeforms. I have often joked that we need to charge admission when people come over to our avizooquarium! They're all very cute, but also very, very messy! My wife helped, of course, but only after she got home from working the second of her two jobs. We have both been so busy this week, we are way behind. It will take a Christmas miracle to whip this place into proper shape by tomorrow evening!
In spite of it all, I still owe it to all of you to put up the results of the photo contest from this week, which received a record number of entries! I also need to find a good picture for the new one. I am trying to accomplish this now, so that they are ready by morning. I only hope I can stay awake long enough to finish! If not, rest assured that I will post the goodies ASAP.
Thank you for your understanding, and Merry Christmas!
p.s., Wanna buy a bird?
Thursday, December 15, 2005
Peace Man...
Many, many more Dems could be added to this one. 
Iowa Presidential Watch
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MN Blogger
Conservative Cat
Iowa Presidential Watch
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MN Blogger
Conservative Cat
All The Spin That's Fit To Print
It is really something when the New York Times' attempt to push a bogus story about the Iraqi elections is smoked out by Reuters. Stranger things have happened - but not very often.
Dexter Filkins (NYT):
Mussab al-Khairalla (Reuters):
Despite being refuted by people who are in the best position to know what's what, the Times article still was able to meme itself throughout the MSM:
Good question, Rush. But I won't hold my breath waiting for an answer - or for a correction by the Times.
H/T - Rush Limbaugh
Dexter Filkins (NYT):
BAGHDAD, Iraq, Dec. 13 - Less than two days before nationwide elections, the Iraqi border police seized a tanker on Tuesday that had just crossed from Iran filled with thousands of forged ballots, an official at the Interior Ministry said.
The tanker was seized in the evening by agents with the American-trained border protection force at the Iraqi town of Badra, after crossing at Munthirya on the Iraqi border, the official said. According to the Iraqi official, the border police found several thousand partly completed ballots inside.
The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly, said the Iranian truck driver told the police under interrogation that at least three other trucks filled with ballots had crossed from Iran at different spots along the border.
The official, who did not attend the interrogation, said he did not know where the driver was headed, or what he intended to do with the ballots.
Mussab al-Khairalla (Reuters):
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The head of Iraq's border guards denied police reports on Wednesday that a tanker truck stuffed with thousands of forged ballot papers had been seized crossing into Iraq from Iran before Thursday's elections.
"This is all a lie," said Lieutenant General Ahmed al-Khafaji, the chief of the U.S.-trained force which has responsibility for all Iraq's borders.
"I heard this yesterday and I checked all the border crossings right away. The borders are all closed anyway," he told Reuters.
Iraq's frontiers are closed for the period of the election.
"I contacted all the border crossing points and there was no report of any such incident," Khafaji said.
Interior Minister Bayan Jabor also denied the reports, which the New York Times ran prominently, quoting a single unnamed Interior Ministry source, and said it was an attempt to discredit the election process.
Despite being refuted by people who are in the best position to know what's what, the Times article still was able to meme itself throughout the MSM:
RUSH: This was this morning on CNN. Miles O'Brien interviewing a member of the Multi-National Corps of Iraq, US Army Colonel Brian Stephenson live, and Miles O'Brien said, "Colonel Brian Stephenson, one of the people charged with securing these elections, colonel, good to have you with us. First of all let's talk about these phony ballots. What do you know about that truckload of ballots and the possibility there might have been others out there?"
COL. STEPHENSON: We received that report very early this morning, and as with any report like that, we'll get to the source and try and confirm whether or not it's true, which we have not been able to do yet.
RUSH: So O'Brien says, "Well, how good were these counterfeits? I mean, is there some concern they could easily be mistaken for real ballots?"
COL. STEPHENSON: Well, we haven't even confirmed that the story is even true, so we can't assess how valid the ballots might be.
O'BRIEN: So you're personally unaware of the story? We've been reporting it, other news media have been reporting it, you're not aware of it?
COL. STEPHENSON: Oh, I'm very aware of it. We just have no corroboration that it's true, and we're trying to confirm and do just what you mentioned is find out are there in fact ballots there and could they be used as counterfeits. Again, we have a lot of steps in place to prevent that even if it were to come through the country.
RUSH: See, now, what the colonel didn't say but said is that just because you are reporting it at CNN and the rest of the media doesn't mean it's true. Now, you heard, Miles O'Brien read the New York Times, it's gospel, asks this guy, "Well, these ballots coming in, looked forged?"
"We haven't even seen them yet."
"Well, do you think they are pretty good looking forgeries?"
"No, we haven't even seen them. We haven't confirmed it's true."
"Well, do you think there are more that you haven't found?"
"Well, no, we haven't confirmed that it's true yet."
"Well, how many of them are there?"
"Well, we haven't confirmed that it's true yet."
"But we're reporting it in the media, and the media says it's happening."
"Well, we're trying to do what you're doing to confirm it." How many times did the guy have to say we haven't confirmed the story? And yet every question was oriented around the fact the story is it true. Now we know the story was bogus. Now, I can tell you, I ask the question, to what extent will they criticize the New York Times for its repeated lies and errors?
Good question, Rush. But I won't hold my breath waiting for an answer - or for a correction by the Times.
H/T - Rush Limbaugh
Tuesday, December 13, 2005
A Whole Lotta Nothing
I'll be very interested to to learn whether allegations that the United States Central Intelligence Agency operated secret prisons in Europe are true. This report from the Associated Press does not add one iota to the discussion.
Here's how it starts.
That's pretty definitive. The body of the story, I would anticipate, would flesh out the details, the proof, that all of this occurred. I would be wrong. What follows is a series of allegations without evidence, innuendo, and speculation worthy of Liz Smith.
The investigator, Swiss Senator Dick Marty, found "clues" that this occurred in Poland and Romania. He speculates:
Sure, they were flown to North Africa, but it's "up to you to confirm it"? Checking with Poland, Romania and Morocco, however, yielded nothing, only denials of involvement or knowledge thereof . Zip.
Who is alleging this? The Washington Post reported on it on Nov. 2, and the NY based Human Rights watch supposedly reached this conclusion by analyzing the flight logs of CIA planes. In fact, about 2 weeks after the initial report Mr. Marty stated large prisons were unlikely. Mr. Marty continues.
Here's how it starts.
Investigator: U.S. Shipped Out Detainees
PARIS - A European investigator said Tuesday he has found mounting indications the United States illegally held detainees in Europe but then hurriedly shipped out the last ones to North Africa a month ago when word leaked out.
That's pretty definitive. The body of the story, I would anticipate, would flesh out the details, the proof, that all of this occurred. I would be wrong. What follows is a series of allegations without evidence, innuendo, and speculation worthy of Liz Smith.
The investigator, Swiss Senator Dick Marty, found "clues" that this occurred in Poland and Romania. He speculates:
"To my knowledge, those detainees were moved about a month ago, maybe a little more," he told reporters after briefing the legal committee of the Council of Europe, a human rights watchdog, on his findings. "They were moved to North Africa."
Asked by The Associated Press on the sidelines of the meeting to which North African country detainees might have been moved, he said: "I would imagine that it would be Morocco — up to you to confirm it."
Sure, they were flown to North Africa, but it's "up to you to confirm it"? Checking with Poland, Romania and Morocco, however, yielded nothing, only denials of involvement or knowledge thereof . Zip.
Who is alleging this? The Washington Post reported on it on Nov. 2, and the NY based Human Rights watch supposedly reached this conclusion by analyzing the flight logs of CIA planes. In fact, about 2 weeks after the initial report Mr. Marty stated large prisons were unlikely. Mr. Marty continues.
Marty told the council's legal committee information gathered so far "reinforced the credibility of the allegations concerning the transfer and temporary detention of individuals.
"Reinforced the credibility of the allegations?" That's some publishing standard. The evidence must be pretty solid. No. Here's what we find in paragraph 12.
The investigator told reporters he could not offer proof that secret detention centers existed. But he cited two suspected cases of detainees held by U.S. authorities in Europe as signs that suspects were held at least temporarily in Europe.
The cases cited were the alleged February 2003 kidnapping of Egyptian cleric Osama Moustafa Hassan Nasr by the CIA in Milan, Italy; and claims by Khaled al-Masri, a Lebanese-born German...
Of course, Nasr actually was about to be detained as a suspected terrorist, and al-Masri has only allegations.
So what we have is a) concern for a probable terrorist "kidnapped" (I would say apprehended) in Italy (how that relates to the allegations I have no idea), b) other allegations by a Lebanese man, with no proof, c) denials of involvement or knowledge by the three nations directly named, d) an actual CIA leak of classified - but unverified and possibly false - information in the CIA's continuing war against the Bush administration, and e) analysis of flight logs as proof.
I'm waiting for more data. Meanwhile, Mr. Marty, unless you produce a little more of substance, keep your anti-American public statements to yourself.
Greetings From the North Pole
H/T - Jay D. Dyson of Sacred Cow Burgers
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"He's Dead, Jim"
Associated Press:
As a practicing Catholic, the issue of the death penalty has always conflicted me. In my head, I support my church's position against capital punishment. But in my heart, I know society is better off without people like Williams amongst us. Had he been spared, there is the certainty that the four horrific murders attributed to him would recede even further from the public consciousness. Once William's crimes are forgotten, some future governor of California could conceiveably pardon him to gain brownie points with the radical interest groups who are slowing strangling the Golden State. The possibility of Williams one day walking free makes a mockery of the legal system.
I take no joy in the fact that Williams was executed. But now, maybe the families of his victims can achieve some sort of closure. They have certainly suffered enough over the past two and a half decades.
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Joust the Facts
SAN QUENTIN, Calif. — Convicted killer Stanley Tookie Williams, the Crips gang co-founder whose case stirred a national debate about capital punishment versus the possibility of redemption, was executed Tuesday morning.
Williams, 51, died at 12:35 a.m. Officials at San Quentin State Prison seemed to have trouble injecting the lethal mixture into his muscular arm.
As they struggled to find a vein, Williams looked up repeatedly and appeared frustrated, shaking his head at supporters and other witnesses.
"You doing that right?" it sounded as if he asked one of the men with a needle.
After he was declared dead, his supporters shouted in unison: "The state of California just killed an innocent man," as they walked out of the chamber...
...Williams was condemned in 1981 for gunning down convenience store clerk Albert Owens, 26, at a 7-Eleven in Whittier and killing Yen-I Yang, 76, Tsai-Shai Chen Yang, 63, and the couple's daughter Yu-Chin Yang Lin, 43, at the Los Angeles motel they owned. Williams claimed he was innocent.
As a practicing Catholic, the issue of the death penalty has always conflicted me. In my head, I support my church's position against capital punishment. But in my heart, I know society is better off without people like Williams amongst us. Had he been spared, there is the certainty that the four horrific murders attributed to him would recede even further from the public consciousness. Once William's crimes are forgotten, some future governor of California could conceiveably pardon him to gain brownie points with the radical interest groups who are slowing strangling the Golden State. The possibility of Williams one day walking free makes a mockery of the legal system.
I take no joy in the fact that Williams was executed. But now, maybe the families of his victims can achieve some sort of closure. They have certainly suffered enough over the past two and a half decades.
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Joust the Facts
Monday, December 12, 2005
The Truth Hurts - Part II
You can tell that the new GOP video has struck a raw nerve among the Democrats. Rather than try to debunk it as factually incorrect, they do this:
The only things that are shameful and disgusting about the video are the remarks that were made by Dean, Pelosi and Kerry.
UPDATE - The Washington Times:
Emphasis mine. Obviously, the Times editorial writer didn't realize that Sen. Inouye considered reminding the public what the Democratic leaders were saying to be shameful and disgusting.
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MN Blogger
SENATOR CALLS ON BUSH TO TAKE DOWN ATTACK AD
Sat Dec 10 2005 16:41:38 ET
Today, Senator Daniel Inouye, the Ranking Member of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee and a recipient of the Medal of Honor for his service in World War II, released the following statement:
"As a Veteran of World War II, I know what it’s like to fight a war and put your life on the line every day. I also know what it takes to win a war, and I know that politics and an attack machine like the President’s plays no part in it.
"The Republican Party’s latest ad is a shameful and disgusting attempt to distract the American people from the problems in Iraq. It may improve the President’s political fortunes, but the American people and our troops will pay the price. I hope that President Bush realizes how shameful it is to play politics when what we really need is leadership, and that he will direct his Party to take down this ad immediately."
Developing...
The only things that are shameful and disgusting about the video are the remarks that were made by Dean, Pelosi and Kerry.
UPDATE - The Washington Times:
There appears to be an even larger body of Democrats who understand that, whatever their true feelings about President Bush and pulling the plug on the Iraqi people, politicians who associate themselves with the Pelosi-Dean position may be courting political disaster. Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chairman Rep. Rahm Emanuel has said privately that Mrs. Pelosi's stance could backfire on the Democrats. The Washington Post on Wednesday quoted a Democratic strategist as stating that the party's antiwar stance is jeopardizing the party's efforts to regain control of the house. "Plenty of Democrats are cringing" at Mrs. Pelosi's high-profile advocacy of a withdrawal because she is backing a position that most Americans do not support, the paper reported.
In the coming weeks, the administration needs to remind people of the political chasm that separates the Nancy Pelosi/Howard Dean wing of the party from the Joe Lieberman/Steny Hoyer Democrats.
Emphasis mine. Obviously, the Times editorial writer didn't realize that Sen. Inouye considered reminding the public what the Democratic leaders were saying to be shameful and disgusting.
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MN Blogger
The Unheavenly City Redux
Joel Kotkin:
None of what Kotkin writes in his article is news. Edwin Banfield noted it in The Unheavenly City back in the early 70s. But then - like now - the truth hurts.
Last September’s tragedy in New Orleans revealed, in the starkest manner, the soft underbelly of America’s cities. After all the 1990s rhetoric insisting that “Cities are back!” we got a glimpse behind the facades of a major urban center and tourist mecca which revealed many utterly dependent and disorganized residents, looking more like Third Worlders than denizens of a modern metropolis. In the process, the urban liberalism that has dominated city administration for the last generation was unmasked...
...The truth is that, rather than improving conditions for average residents of their cities, many urban politicians and interest groups have promoted policies that actually exacerbated a metastasizing underclass. Urban liberals tend to blame a shrivelling of Great Society programs for problems in cities. Observers such as former Houston mayor Bob Lanier have suggested, however, that the Great Society impulse itself is what most damaged many cities—by stressing welfare payments and income redistribution, ethnic grievance, and lax policies on issues like crime and homelessness, instead of the creation of a stronger economy.
This modern liberalism veered far from the traditional progressive visions of politicians like Theodore Roosevelt and Fiorello LaGuardia. Those leaders believed in the basics: building up the economic infrastructure that government has long been responsible for (like ports and transportation), efficient and honest provision of services like education and policing, and mainstream, even conservative, social policies. Today, only a handful of mayors like Chicago’s Richard Daley, Jr., Charleston’s Joseph Riley, and Houston’s Bill White still stick to this “back to basics” focus. Most other urban leaders have turned to more ephemeral issues, less mainstream values, and economic policies that largely surrender to public worker unions, spiced with an emphasis on cultivating arts, entertainment and pro sports, tourism, and show-projects.
None of what Kotkin writes in his article is news. Edwin Banfield noted it in The Unheavenly City back in the early 70s. But then - like now - the truth hurts.
Saturday, December 10, 2005
It's Not That Big A Tent, Really
Sen. Joe Lieberman (D-CT) has become persona non grata to Democrats because of his firm support for the Bush Administration and for the troops fighting in Iraq. The "big tent" of the Democratic Party does not appear to be large enough to hold a firmly pro-war former VP candidate.
Lieberman's support has been denounced by Howard Dean, who maintains that you can be staunchly anti-war and still "support the troops."
Horsehockey. When you "undercut" the president you weaken the foreign policy decisions of the president in many areas, not just the war, by giving other nations an impression that American positions will not be supported. Additionally, by calling for withdrawal or "redeployment" you are failing to support the troops, implying that they'll be unable to successfully complete the job they started. Al Qaeda is counting on that lack of support as part of their strategy.
Mike McCurry had this to say:
It would seem, actually, that Democrats do not respect what he's saying, particularly Dr. Dean's wing. The second part is true. Lieberman is not playing politics with Iraq - he's stating his position. It's the "Howard Dean/we can take back Congress if we're anti-war" group that is playing politics with it. By doing so, however, they're taking the position of the leftmost 25%.
Is this a recipe for success? It wasn't in 1972.
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But That's Just My Opinion
MN Blogger
Jim-Rose.com
Lieberman's pro-war views may be winning him praise from a grateful White House, but some Democratic colleagues see him as undercutting their party's efforts to wrest control of Congress from the GOP next fall.
"He's doing damage to the ability of Democrats to wage a national campaign," said Ken Dautrich, a University of Connecticut public policy professor. "It's Lieberman being Lieberman. And it's frustrating for people trying to put a Democratic strategy together."
Lieberman's support has been denounced by Howard Dean, who maintains that you can be staunchly anti-war and still "support the troops."
"We believe that talking about the president's failed strategy in Iraq is not unpatriotic," Dean said on CNN. "It may undercut the president, but it does not undercut our troops."
Horsehockey. When you "undercut" the president you weaken the foreign policy decisions of the president in many areas, not just the war, by giving other nations an impression that American positions will not be supported. Additionally, by calling for withdrawal or "redeployment" you are failing to support the troops, implying that they'll be unable to successfully complete the job they started. Al Qaeda is counting on that lack of support as part of their strategy.
Dean tossed a parting jab at Lieberman, claiming Democrats are not as divided on Iraq as press reports say. "The differences are pretty small, perhaps, Senator Lieberman excepted," he said.
Mike McCurry had this to say:
"They may not agree with him, but Democrats respect what he is saying," said former Clinton White House spokesman Michael McCurry. "People know he's not playing politics with Iraq."
It would seem, actually, that Democrats do not respect what he's saying, particularly Dr. Dean's wing. The second part is true. Lieberman is not playing politics with Iraq - he's stating his position. It's the "Howard Dean/we can take back Congress if we're anti-war" group that is playing politics with it. By doing so, however, they're taking the position of the leftmost 25%.
Is this a recipe for success? It wasn't in 1972.
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Thanks for the links!
But That's Just My Opinion
MN Blogger
Jim-Rose.com
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