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Saturday, June 04, 2005

Being Ivy League Smart Doesn't Equate With Having Knowledge

Although the survey is unscientific, it appears there are quite a few students at Dartmouth College who cannot correctly name five current Justices on the U.S. Supreme Court, three of the freedoms protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution, or three of the twelve Apostles. (via Powerline)
On This Date...

Today marks the 16th anniversary of the Tiananman Square massacre in Beijing, China.

According to current estimates, as many as two-hundred-and-fifty Chinese are still serving prison sentences for Tiananmen-related activities. The world does not know the exact numbers of those killed, wounded or arrested because, sixteen years later, the government of China still has not provided an accounting. Instead, the government has imposed a near complete blackout of information about the event.

Update: Thousands gather in Hong Kong to remember. (Full article here)

Friday, June 03, 2005

Kick the Koran

And incur the wrath of lefty human rights groups and their enablers in the MSM.

Display a crucifix in a container of urine at taxpayer expense, and have it praised as art by the aforementioned groups.

Update: Michelle Malkin gives us information that the MSM won't disclose or tries to minimize.
Infanticide Upheld

The U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals struck down today a Virginia State law that made it a felony "for a person to knowingly perform 'partial birth infanticide.'"

The basis for striking it down? The statute doesn't contain a "woman's health" exception.

From the dissent:

The majority’s opinion is a bold, new law that, in essence, constitutionalizes infanticide of a most gruesome nature...(Dissenting Op. at 19).

Can we not see that our discussions and the law we make in striking down Virginia’s prohibition are unfit for the laws of a people of liberty? I wonder with befuddlement, fear, and sadness, how we can so joyfully celebrate the birth of a child, so zealously protect an infant and a mother who is pregnant, so reverently wonder about how human life begins, grows, and develops, and at the same time write to strike down a law to preserve a right to destroy a partially born infant. If the disconnect is explained by personal convenience, then we must reason that all morality is personal, without commonality and source. The product of such chaos is unfathomable. (Dissenting Op. at 45).

Thursday, June 02, 2005

Over the Top Bad

If you're on the West Coast, you may have seen the incredibly inappropriate Carl's Jr. commercial featuring Paris Hilton. I can't imagine that the founder of Carl's Jr., Carl Karcher, is very happy about it given his past support of socially conservative causes in California like Prop. 22 (which defines marriage as being between one man and one woman) and the fact that his son, Jermone, is a longtime Catholic priest in Orange County.

Since Mr. Karcher is a fairly elderly man (probably in his late 80's) I'm left to wonder if he even has any direct control over the company he founded anymore.
Protest at the University of Western Ontario (Canada)

The school is apparently giving honorary degrees to a couple of pro-abortion zealots, as well as the president of Notre Dame, Rev. Edward Malloy. More information here.

Monday, May 30, 2005

Beatification

PBXVI has officially kicked off the the process for John Paul The Great.

The process to beatify Pope John Paul II has officially begun with an edict inviting witnesses to testify about his saintliness and asking anyone with his manuscripts, letters or other documents to give them to the Vatican.

(...)

It will take years for the Vatican to gather all of John Paul's writings and hear from witnesses testifying about his virtues. It must then certify a miracle attributed to his intercession after his death for him to be beatified. Following beatification, a second miracle is needed to be confirmed before he can be made a saint.
Criticism Kills

That's the opinion of at least one judge who thinks that some of the recent violence that has been committed in America's courtrooms are, in part, the result of criticisms directed at judges by politicians.

"Fostering disrespect for judges can only encourage those that are on the edge of the fringe to exact revenge on a judge who ruled against them," [Judge Joan] Lefkow said.

Unless the rhetoric actually advocates revenge, this argument is as nonsensical as the argument that banning guns will prevent crazy people from committing murder.

I don't know what Lefkow's political leanings are, but I wonder if she thinks the sliming of President Bush's judicial nominees by the Democrats, and the Left in general, falls within the scope of disrespect for judges that she believes Congress has a duty not to foster.

Update: The article doesn't explicitly say it, but I think it pretty clearly reveals Lefkow's politics.

Update 2: Actually, it's a joke that came to mind after reading Lefkow's dumb suggestion that being "harshly" critical of a judge is the same as telling someone to murder that judge. As told to me by someone at my firm: What do you call a lawyer with a 30 IQ? Your Honor.

Sunday, May 29, 2005

Good Mormon Mr. President

Mass. Governor Mitt Romney is a potential GOP candidate for President, and The Weekly Standard investigates whether his LDS background will hurt his chances. (via Hugh Hewitt)

The article brings to mind a conversation I had a few years ago with an Evangelical friend of mine on this very topic. To my surprise, my friend said that while she wouldn't have a problem supporting a Republican presidential candidate who was Mormon, she couldn't see herself voting for a woman for President. The latter just wasn't biblical.