The Patriot Post Digest 11-20-2009

[nChrist]

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The Patriot Post Digest 11-20-2009
From The Federalist Patriot
Free Email Subscription
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The Foundation

"The natural progress of things is for liberty to yield and government to gain ground." --Thomas Jefferson

Government & Politics
Health Care Cost Nightmare
Harry Reid claims his 2,000-page bill will reduce the deficit. He's quite the comedian.

It's an accepted fact that no government program comes in on budget, and this maxim likely won't change with the health care legislation that recently passed the House. Republican analysis of the bill in the Senate Budget Committee reveals that a more realistic price tag for the House version, after the benefit provisions are figured in, comes to $3 trillion over 10 years, not $1 trillion as Democrats claim. The disparity comes from the fact that the taxes and fees meant to pay for the bill occur immediately, while major aspects of "reform" won't be implemented until at least 2013. Thus, the true cost of the plan won't reveal itself until well after the current president has stood for re-election.

Despite Speaker Nancy Pelosi's (D-CA) assurances that the bill will lower health care costs, another report released this week by the nonpartisan Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services found that the House plan would actually raise costs by $289 billion over 10 years. Furthermore, Medicare would be cut by half a trillion dollars, leading to reduced benefits and services.

On that note, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) and Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) introduced the Senate's 2,074-page, $849 billion version of the health care takeover plan. Reid has laid out an ambitious plan to pass HarryCare by Christmas.

The Senate bill clocks in a tad cheaper than the House version in part because many major provisions, such as the public option, would be delayed until 2014 -- one year later than the House bill. Reid also claims the bill will reduce the federal deficit by $650 billion in its second 10 years. A 2,000-page bill will reduce the deficit? That Reid is quite the comedian. Besides, while the Congressional Budget Office says the bill will reduce the deficit by $130 billion over 10 years, CBO cautions that its effect on the deficit over the following decade would be "subject to substantial uncertainty." That's comforting, isn't it?

Notably, the Senate bill includes a 40 percent tax on high-deductible "Cadillac" insurance plans (though, naturally, Congress' Cadillac plan is exempt) as opposed to the House's tax on the "rich." It also includes a 5 percent tax on elective cosmetic surgeries (how will Nancy feel about that?), which apparently helps pay for providing -- surprise -- federal subsidies for abortion.

Reid wants to hold a vote to begin debate as early as this weekend. He has "promised" not to use the procedural tactic of reconciliation, which would allow him to pass the bill with only 51 votes instead of the 60 needed to overcome a filibuster -- but experience shows how little we should trust Democrats' promises.

As for that prized debate, Harkin referred to a Republican call to read the full bill on the Senate floor as a political tactic, and he threatens that Democrats will hold a live quorum to keep everyone in the chamber while the reading is taking place -- which sounds awfully like a political tactic to us.

It's interesting that both parties seem to view the public reading of the bill as some sort of parliamentary game. Perhaps if public readings of proposed legislation took place all of the time, we would actually know what Congress is up to. What a novel idea.

Democrat senators who pride themselves as being deficit hawks will have a tough choice to make in the coming days and weeks. Will they support HarryCare, which makes them look like hypocrites when they face the voters next year and in 2012? Or will they do the right thing and stop this runaway entitlement before it shoots out of the gate?

The BIG Lie

Where is the constitutional authority for a federal mandate that individuals must buy health insurance?

Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) says that one's easy: "The very first enumerated power gives the power to provide for the common defense and the general welfare. So it's right on, right on the front end."

For those who don't follow Sen. Merkley's brilliant explication, he refers to the Constitution's Preamble, which, among several other things, says that the Constitution was written to "promote the general Welfare," though the Preamble doesn't list enumerated powers.

Furthermore, James Madison, primary author of the Constitution, vehemently disagreed, writing, "If Congress can do whatever in their discretion can be done by money, and will promote the General Welfare, the Government is no longer a limited one, possessing enumerated powers, but an indefinite one, subject to particular exceptions."

Thomas Jefferson likewise stated that if Congress could "do anything they please to provide for the general welfare ... it would reduce the whole instrument [the Constitution] to a single phrase, that of instituting a Congress with power to do whatever would be for the good of the United States; and as they would be the sole judges of the good or evil, it would be also a power to do whatever evil they please." For the simpletons in Congress, Jefferson concluded, "Certainly no such universal power was meant to be given them." Regardless of what Senator Jeff Merkley says.

[nChrist]

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The Patriot Post Digest 11-20-2009
From The Federalist Patriot
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This Week's 'Braying Jackass' Award

"We even have blacks voting against the health care bill. You can't vote against health care and call yourself a black man." --race hustler Jesse Jackson, calling out Rep. Artur Davis (D-AL), the only member of the Congressional Black Caucus who dared to stray from the Democrat Plantation by voting against PelosiCare

Faith and Family: Shut Up, She Explained

Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO), like every other Democrat, could use a constitutional education. Oddly enough, though, the part of the Constitution DeGette needs brushing up on is the Left's favorite part: The First Amendment. Leftists have abused it for decades to hammer their agenda into our laws and culture. But they have also intentionally ignored its guarantee of the free exercise of religion. To them, the Constitution is just a scrap of paper written by dead white men. It's old and irrelevant today except for the few phrases that can be used to promote their socialism.

Regarding the health care legislative monstrosity working its way through Congress and the input of religious groups, DeGette said that "religiously-affiliated groups ... should be shut out of the process" because of their opposition to federal funding of abortions. "Last I heard, we had separation of church and state in this country," she sulked. "I've got to say that I think the Catholic bishops and all of the other groups shouldn't have input."

As Family Research Council President Tony Perkins observed, "According to her, if a group of people who are in association with one another because of their Christian faith, they should not have a voice in the crafting of public policy. What she is asserting is that if your ideas and actions are a product of your faith, you're a second class citizen and your voice should not be heard."

New & Notable Legislation

The House passed Medicare "doc fix" by a vote of 243-183 Thursday. The bill would permanently fix the way doctors who provide care for Medicare patients are reimbursed. The projected cost of the fix is $210 billion over 10 years and it doesn't include a way to pay for it, meaning that while Barack Obama has changed his tune and is now decrying the deficit, the House is busy adding to it.

Legacy of the American Revolution

"Liberty must at all hazards be supported. We have a right to it, derived from our Maker. But if we had not, our fathers have earned and bought it for us, at the expense of their ease, their estates, their pleasure, and their blood. ... A Constitution of Government once changed from Freedom, can never be restored. Liberty, once lost, is lost forever. Our obligations to our country never cease but with our lives." --John Adams

Bowing to a Perceived Legacy

He's at it again. While in Japan as part of his eight-day trip to Asia this week, Barack Obama greeted Emperor Akihito of Japan with a deep bow. While protocol dictates that his (Akihito's, not BO's) subjects bow before the emperor, heads of state are considered equals and need not bow -- in fact, most don't, instead simply shaking hands with Akihito. In February 2007, for example, Vice President Dick Cheney greeted Akihito with a warm handshake. Obama's deep bow signifies great deference to a superior -- a seemingly strange act for a narcissist.

Earlier this year, Obama all but scraped his forehead on the floor before King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia as well, another mark of the jarring trend in his revamped foreign policy. President George W. Bush's foreign policy was considered by the world's elite and diplomatic striped-pants crowd to be that of an uninformed American cowboy hick, but Bush's successor is certainly making up for any strength the U.S. showed in the last eight years. The story behind the bow is obvious then: Obama is simply continuing his World Apology Tour.

From the Left: Cold Cash Placed on Ice

Friday the 13th was indeed an unlucky day for former Rep. William Jefferson (D-LA). It was the day he was sentenced to 13 years in federal prison for his participation in a bribery scheme involving a Nigerian politician -- a scheme which led to additional charges of money laundering and racketeering.

U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III handed down the sentence, which was less than the 27 years sought by federal prosecutors, after calling the case "the most extensive and pervasive pattern of corruption in the history of Congress" and "a cancer on the body politic." Jefferson was also ordered to repay over $470,000 to the government, but prospects of repayment are slim as the former congressman and his wife recently filed for bankruptcy.

Jefferson has 10 days to appeal; otherwise, he'll be movin' on up to a federal corrections facility to begin his sentence. To borrow from an old lawyer joke, what do you call one corrupt Congressman in jail? A good start.

Clinton Judge Impeached

A federal district judge who overturned a Louisiana law banning partial-birth abortion is now on trial himself, facing impeachment charges before Congress. G. Thomas Porteous Jr., a Clinton appointee, is accused of seeking money and gifts from attorneys with cases before his court, stretching back to the 1980s when he was a state judge. By 2000, Porteous had run up credit card debts -- mainly cash advances at casinos -- exceeding $150,000. Other allegations against Porteous include declaring bankruptcy under a false name in 2001 and filing false financial disclosure statements.

The obvious question beckons: Was justice for sale? It's unfortunate that Porteous appears to have a gambling problem because his questionable integrity could also have tainted his decisions. Porteous ruled against the partial-birth ban, calling it a "back-door effort" to limit abortion, despite overwhelming front door legislative support for the measure, and used his power on the bench to supplant that of the legislature. The system of government we hold dear depends on integrity in all three branches, and it seems that Louisiana doesn't have the best track record on that front.

[nChrist]

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The Patriot Post Digest 11-20-2009
From The Federalist Patriot
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Army Corps of Engineers Blamed for Katrina Flooding

Let's make it three-for-three with Louisiana and judges. "A federal judge ruled Wednesday that the Army Corps of Engineers' failure to properly maintain a navigation channel led to massive flooding in Hurricane Katrina, a decision that could make the federal government vulnerable to billions of dollars in claims," reports The Washington Post. U.S. District Judge Stanwood Duval ruled in favor of six residents who blamed the Army Corps for flooding in the Lower 9th Ward and St. Bernard Parish, and he awarded $720,000 to the plaintiffs. Two residents of eastern New Orleans were not so lucky, as Duval said the Army was not at fault for flooding there. The Post notes the most important factor here: "The ruling should give more than 100,000 other individuals, businesses and government entities a better shot at claiming billions of dollars in damages." Talk about windfall profits.

National Security
Bringing the Mountain to Mohammed

"Can you give me a case in United States history," Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) asked of Attorney General Eric Holder this week, "where an enemy combatant caught on a battlefield was tried in civilian court?" Holder, the chief surrender-facilitator, was outlining to Congress the administration's latest ploy to appease its über-Left base, namely, moving Khalid Sheikh Mohammed (KSM) -- the self-proclaimed mastermind of 9/11 -- and four other al-Qa'ida 9/11 planners from Guantanamo to New York to be tried like ordinary civilians in a Manhattan federal court. When Holder hemmed and hawed ("I don't know. I'd have to look at that. I think that, you know, the determination I've made..."), Graham shot back, "We're making history here, Mr. Attorney General. I'll answer it for you. The answer is no."

The courtroom is located just a few blocks from what was once the World Trade Center.

What on earth could Holder be thinking? Okay, perhaps we've overstated our case a bit. After all, it's not as though trying KSM in a U.S. court will be seen as a sign of weakness by America's enemies -- oh no, wait: it will. And it isn't that doing this will put American lives in NYC at risk from potential al-Qa'ida attacks against the "Great Satan" -- oh, um, guess it'll do that too. So much so, in fact, that Sen. Chuck Schumer is seeking $75 million from the administration to cover terrorist shipping and handling. But at least it will keep the line between unlawful enemy combatants and common domestic criminals from blurring ... or not. You get the picture.

Let's also not forget that KSM, et al., will now enjoy our civil justice system's constitutional protections -- the same ones U.S. citizens get. Will waterboarding be considered "duress" for confession purposes under the U.S. civil justice system? How about a lack of Miranda warnings? (Holder refused to answer this question.) What about the federal rules of evidence and their impact on disclosure of sensitive intelligence collection methods? Will any issues be raised on appeal if a change of venue from Ground Zero is denied? These are merely a few of the countless questions that are now fair game for KSM and his lawyers. Eleven months ago, these thugs were ready, willing and able to plead guilty and to get their heavenly rewards. Now? Not so fast.

Before Holder's decision, another option having a rich tradition in U.S. history and international law had been readily available: military tribunals. In the wake of the Supreme Court's bizarre decision in Hamdan v. Rumsfeld (2006), which effectively -- albeit temporarily -- struck down military tribunals, Congress passed the 2006 Military Commissions Act specifically to reaffirm this judicial due process for illegal combatants, including KSM. Unfortunately, that option is now foreclosed.

As it is, whether he knows it or not, the Chosen One is betting his presidency on these trials. That's because the American people understand one thing: As an illegal enemy combatant, KSM should not be entitled to the same rights and privileges as the innocent U.S. citizens he murdered on 9/11.

If these despicable vermin aren't convicted, sentenced and put to death, America will not forget who allowed it to happen, "Chosen One" or not. That's quite a gamble.

This Week's 'Alpha Jackass' Award

"I don't think it will be offensive at all when he's convicted and when the death penalty is applied to him." --Judge Barack Obama

When questioned later on being judge, jury and executioner, he clarified, "What I said was, people will not be offended if that's the outcome. I'm not pre-judging, I'm not going to be in that courtroom, that's the job of prosecutors, the judge and the jury. What I'm absolutely clear about is that I have complete confidence in the American people and our legal traditions and the prosecutors, the tough prosecutors from New York who specialize in terrorism."

Support the Props, er, the Troops

Barack Obama traveled to Osan Air Base in South Korea Thursday on his way back from an eight-day trip to Asia. The Washington Post reports on the president's interaction with the troops: "Obama arrived on the base 3:19 p.m. local time (1 a.m. Eastern Standard Time), and received a rousing welcome from 1,500 troops in camouflage uniforms, many holding cameras or pointing cell phones to snap pictures. 'You guys make a pretty good photo op,' the president said." Once again, it's all about Obama. But he "supports" the troops!

The Post also noted, "He got a huge cheer when he told them he was increasing military pay. 'That's what you call an applause line,' he said, before boarding his jet and taking off." Could the commander in chief be any more out of touch with the troops he ostensibly leads?

[nChrist]

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The Patriot Post Digest 11-20-2009
From The Federalist Patriot
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Hurry Up and Wait

Last Saturday, President Obama asked Congress to delay investigations into the attack on U.S. soldiers at Fort Hood by jihadi Nidal Malik Hasan until federal and military authorities complete their own probes. Maybe he wants the investigation on the same timeline as his decision on troop levels in Afghanistan.

Obama asked lawmakers to "resist the temptation to turn this tragic event into the political theater," apparently wanting to save that for KSM's civilian trial in New York. Fortunately, Congress and the Pentagon are pressing ahead anyway. In the Senate, Joe Lieberman's Homeland Security Committee opened its investigation Thursday, and in the House, Rep. Howard McKeon of California, the top Republican on the House Armed Services Committee, said he also will press ahead with an investigation. While Obama has said he is not opposed to congressional hearings, his delay request looks like he's appeasing radical Muslims and avoiding the obvious conclusion in this case: That the Ft. Hood incident was a traitorous jihadi attack on military targets on American soil.

According to Obama, we have to wait for the current probes to "look at the motives of the alleged gunman, including his views and contacts." Well, Mr. President, as we recounted last week (Warfront With Jihadistan: Right Here at Home), Hasan had "Soldier of Allah" printed on his business cards, he screamed "Allahu Akbar" while gunning down our soldiers and he exchanged emails with a radical Muslim cleric who encouraged Muslims to kill U.S. troops.

So we already know all about Hasan's motives, views and contacts. The dead of Ft. Hood deserve justice, but in today's United States, especially under the Obama regime, that justice may be a long time in coming.

Immigration Front: Amnesty Back on the Table

If you felt an invisible slap in the face over the weekend, it was probably Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano's announcement of plans to provide amnesty to the 14 million illegal aliens living in the U.S. She explained that everything's different now that the Southwest border has been secured and fewer immigrants are entering. "The federal government has dedicated unprecedented resources ... and it's made a real difference. ... Seizures in all categories ... are up dramatically." Just this year over $34 million in cash has been seized.

The bitter 2007 debate over illegal immigration occurred "during a period of historically high levels of illegal entry," Napolitano claimed. Now, however, with the recession and "better" enforcement, immigration numbers have dropped by more than half. "Requiring illegal immigrants to register to earn legal status ... will strengthen our economy as these immigrants become full-paying taxpayers," Napolitano said. Then, our newly minted citizens can come out of the shadows, join unions and end the cause of strife between them -- the fact that illegals work for a fraction of the pay of union members. "Think about it: unions will never achieve the best terms for workers when a large part of the workforce is illegal and operates in a shadow economy," Napolitano said. She has seen a "major shift" in the immigration landscape that the Obama administration hopes will make it easier to pass the Grand Amnesty.

Business & Economy
Hope 'n' Change: Stimulus Games

Folks in Arizona's 15th Congressional District sure are happy right now. Or at least they would be if that district actually existed. But details shmetails! Obama's Recovery.gov Web site reported 30 jobs saved or created in the nonexistent district. Fantasy districts didn't stop there: 15 jobs were created in imaginary Oklahoma districts, 39 in phony Iowa districts and 25 in Connecticut's fictional 42nd district -- all at a cost of almost $30 million. Responding to the "unrealistic data," the Obama administration cut 60,000-plus jobs from its most recent stimulus report. Office of Management and Budget Deputy Director Rob Nabors hilariously claimed, "These are cautious, responsible steps to ensure that the information provided to the American people is accurate and reliable."

One thing all too accurate is the number of Americans losing jobs at an alarming rate. The Associated Press reports that more than 15 million taxpayers -- including many retirees all may "unexpectedly owe taxes ... because the government was too generous with their Making Work Pay tax credit." In other words, Uncle Sam goofed in administering a program -- unheard of, we know.

Income Redistribution: Ponzi Motors

In the first volume increase since January 2008, sales at government-owned GM rose 6.6 percent last month. To celebrate the temporary sales bump driven by the government's Cash for Clunkers rebate debacle -- the one that paid taxpayer money to taxpayers who purchased vehicles -- GM will repay $6.7 billion of the $49.9 billion in federal aid it received. GM has lost $88 billion since 2004 and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in June.

Consistent with the circular reasoning so in vogue with liberal visions of funding ObamaCare by taxing ObamaCare, GM is robbing Peter to pay Peter by repaying the government with money from a government contingency fund. While a glaring departure from the usual liberal schemes of robbing Peter to pay Paul, the ridiculousness of GM's plan is too rich. What's the logic in repaying taxpayer loans with taxpayer dollars? The astounding size of this automotive Ponzi scheme would make even Bernie Madoff blush.

In other automotive news, Ford, the only American car manufacturer that isn't beholden to the Obama administration, reported a third-quarter profit of $1 billion. Have you driven a Ford lately?

[nChrist]

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The Patriot Post Digest 11-20-2009
From The Federalist Patriot
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Around the Nation: About Those Energy Savings...

Two expressions in pop culture of conflicting principles are Dire Straits' "Money for Nothing" and Robert Heinlein's TANSTAAFL -- "There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch." When pitted against each other TANSTAAFL wins every time.

The latest example comes from Ohio, where electric utility FirstEnergy planned to leave two energy-saving compact fluorescent (CFL) bulbs free on customer doorsteps. But the "free" bulbs are not actually free, despite lower energy consumption costs. The utility bought the bulbs for $3.50 each. How effective was the utility in negotiating a price for the bulbs? Not very. An Ace Hardware Web site advertises a five-pack of similar bulbs for $13.99, or $2.80 a bulb.

Is the overpriced bulb really free? No. The utility will charge average users an extra 60 cents per month on their electric bills for the next three years, or $21.60 altogether, to cover the cost of the bulbs and the electricity not sold because of the more efficient bulbs. Customers will pay the surcharge whether they use the bulbs or not, and the utility is protected from revenue loss.

Not surprisingly, this scheme has customers howling, which, in turn, caught the attention of politicians. Ohio's governor wants to postpone the bulb distribution over concerns about passing the cost along to consumers without notice. Even Leftist nutcase Congressman Dennis Kucinich has asked the FTC to investigate. Just goes to show, in a rational society, that TANSTAAFL is the natural winner -- which is not to say that we'd bet on this society's being rational.

Culture & Policy
Climate Change This Week: Copenhagen Crash

"Delay is no longer an option," said Barack Obama. Believe it or not, he wasn't referring to health care "reform." He was president-elect Obama at the time, and he was talking about climate change. The Promised Land was to be next month's conference in Copenhagen, where, in glorious unity, nations would come together to save the planet from carbon emissions.

A year later, however, the world-saving plan is still on the back burner. At a breakfast in Singapore attended by Obama, the conference's attendees announced that they are setting a more realistic goal for Copenhagen -- namely, it will be a meeting to prepare for another meeting next year.

The envirofascist community blames the U.S. for this, in particular the Senate, which has -- until now, at least -- refused to force feed the American people yet another unwanted policy in cap-n-tax. But there is also the issue of what the world's biggest carbon emitters, India and China, would agree to. In the past, President George W. Bush refused to consider the Kyoto Protocol because these nations would not adhere to the same environmental limitations. Bush rightly concluded the treaty would give them a huge economic edge.

Obama, knowing he had nothing concrete with which to go to Copenhagen, shrewdly agreed to the less aggressive approach but stated that world leaders should not let the "perfect be the enemy of the good." That's not exactly how we would put it.

From the 'Non Compos Mentis' File

Captain Planet, a.k.a. Al Gore, warned this week about the temperature of the earth's core, saying, "People think about geothermal energy -- when they think about it at all -- in terms of the hot water bubbling up in some places, but two kilometers or so down in most places there are these incredibly hot rocks, 'cause the interior of the earth is extremely hot, several million degrees, and the crust of the earth is hot...."

According to National Review's John Derbyshire, however, "The geothermal gradient is usually quoted as 25-50 degrees Celsius per mile of depth in normal terrain (not, e.g., in the crater of Kilauea). Two kilometers down, therefore, (that's a mile and a quarter if you're not as science-y as Al) you'll have an average gain of 30-60 degrees -- exploitable for things like home heating, though not hot enough to make a nice pot of tea. The temperature at the earth's core, 4,000 miles down, is usually quoted as 5,000 degrees Celsius.... The temperature at the surface of the Sun is around 6,000 degrees Celsius, while at the center, where nuclear fusion is going on bigtime, things get up over 10 million degrees. If the temperature anywhere inside the earth was 'several million degrees,' we'd be a star."

But, again, Gore couldn't be bothered to check his facts. He was too busy Photoshopping the earth to add hurricanes.

[nChrist]

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The Patriot Post Digest 11-20-2009
From The Federalist Patriot
Free Email Subscription
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Judicial Benchmarks: NFL Team Can Keep Name

In 1992, the Washington Redskins were fresh off a Super Bowl championship season when a small group of Native Americans began a court fight against the team to vacate its trademark name and Indian head logo. As the NFL franchise has since had its ups and downs on the field, so has the case in court. The plaintiffs' lone victory in 1999 was overturned in a 2003 appeal, and the saga was finally put to rest this week when the Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal of that ruling.

Washington fans haven't had many chances to sing "Hail to the Redskins" this year. Indeed, after seeing the Redskins so far this season, one can understand why the Native American groups might want the logo rescinded, but fans can rest assured that the team, which has held the "Redskins" moniker since 1933, will retain that identity, even if its play on the field of late has been anything but "brave."

The Union Label

A 17-year-old aspiring Eagle Scout in Allentown, Pennsylvania, recently spent 250 hours clearing a 1,000-foot walking path in a local park. "I decided to do my part in completing this part of the trail. In that way, others could enjoy walking along the river without having to walk on the busy road," the Scout said. Who could possibly have a problem with that?

The Service Employees International Union, that's who. Nick Balzano of the local SEIU said that the union is considering filing a grievance against the city for allowing the Scout to do a job that only union members should be doing. After the city laid off 39 SEIU workers earlier this year, Balzano said, "We'll be looking into the Cub Scout or Boy Scout who did the trails" because "there's to be no volunteers." Of course, instead of voluntarily working on the trail (or Balzano's grammar), the union will be working on the grievance.

Fortunately, common decency may yet prevail. After the mayor publicly announced his support for the Scout, Balzano hedged, saying that the union will likely "let this one go." What generosity.

To Keep and Bear Arms

As Margaret Parrish of Georgia headed outside to see what her puppies were barking at, things immediately took a turn for the worse. As she opened the door, an unidentified intruder grabbed her by the hair and placed a gun to her head. Margaret's husband, 83-year-old John Parrish, watched as the suspect told her, "If you make a sound I'll blow your brains out." He then proceeded to duct tape the arms and legs of both Margaret and John and then left to begin searching through their home. Danny Carlson and a 10-year old girl were also among those in the house and soon found themselves being tied up as well. This bought John time to get free of the duct tape as he remembers thinking, "I had to get my gun." Once free, John grabbed his .22-cal revolver and began firing at the suspect who promptly fled the home.

And Last...

Barack Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize recently despite not having done much for peace during his short (but oh so long) nine months in office. During his trip to Asia this week, he added another trophy to his case. South Korean President Lee Myung-bak presented Obama with a Tae Kwan Do outfit complete with the coveted black belt. It remains to be seen whether the black belt will give Obama the courage to win in Afghanistan or to handle terrorism as an act of war rather than a crime, or even to speak without a teleprompter. Still, the president was grateful, considering that his Tae Kwan Do training has encompassed zero long years. Then again, he does have some pretty extensive experience with bowing...

*****

Veritas vos Liberabit -- Semper Vigilo, Fortis, Paratus, et Fidelis! Mark Alexander, Publisher, for The Patriot's editors and staff.

(Please pray for our Armed Forces standing in harm's way around the world, and for their families -- especially families of those fallen Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen, who granted their lives in defense of American liberty.)