Nobody 662

Nobody Asked Me But:

Of men older than myself, there is one whom I loved and respected above all others. This man, whose goodness and kindness surrounded him like auras, was Barbara’s father, Ed Gold. The world is a meaner place when such men leave us.<<<

ON THE CURRENT TERROR SCARE. Let me start by thanking the British and Pakistani anti-terrorist units who prevented another beyond-terrible catastrophe.

I think my best way to comment on the current situation is to include the following excerpts from e-letters I wrote to Elizabeth and Hugh since the plot was uncovered:

Yes, we are a bit worried but, unless something changes, not enough to cancel. What we are more concerned about is all the packing changes that go with the new security regulations. As it now stands, I will not be able to take both my reading and distance glasses on the plane, unless I carry one pair without a case in a see-through bag. Obviously I can't do that, so I will have to decide on which pair. And we have to have our medicine, wallets, books, etc. in that same type of bag. No camera on the plane, no watch, no purses - although this last one won't affect me much.

Don't get me wrong. I think that security has been much too lax in the fading memories of 9/11, and I support any regulations to keep passengers safe. But do we want to go through the whole thing? The probability of a yes answer is about 95%, but we will sleep on it and decide for sure in the morning. Howeve,r it certainly does replace some of the pleasure with pain.

I think that our country may have to go to a system, like the one in Orlando that Hugh wrote about, where people can go through a one time intensive security check which would include fingerprinting, retina scans, etc. This would allow them to by-pass most of the airport security regulations. A person would have to pay a fee, but it would be worth it. And as much as I hate to say it, we may have to do more ethnic/religious profiling. Any Muslim with a bomb should not be allowed on a plane. Seriously, if most terrorists were bald men in their 70s, I would not object to being profiled.

I agree on Pakistan. It is a country riddled with contradiction. We must hope that their anti-terrorist government keeps as firmly in control as possible, even if we don't like many things about that government - including their possession of the big boom.

I wish we could catch all the son-o-a-bitch terrorists at a convention and nuke them all.<<<

Does staying in Iraq or getting out make us more or less libel to terrorist’s plots? Yes!

Leaving would be seen as a sign of weakness by terrorists and encourage attacks.

Staying is seen as an attempt by us to impose our will on Muslims and encourages terrorist aggression.

Thanks George!<<<

REPUBLICAN SPEAKS OUT ON FOILED TERRORIST ATTACK!

Senator Joseph I. Lieberman seized on the terror arrests in Britain today to attack his Democratic rival, Ned Lamont, saying that Mr. Lamont’s goals for ending the war in Iraq would constitute a “victory” for the extremists who are accused of plotting to blow up airliners traveling between Britain and the United States.

Actually I essentially agree with Joe that we can’t arbitrarily withdraw. Now if he would just condemn Bush for putting us between this rock and hard place, I might take him back into my party.

To me, that is the key to a Democratic victory in November. Condemn the war and the president who started it as tragic and stupid, an unnecessary mistake that has caused the death of many innocent American military personal and deadened the souls of many others. It has changed Iraq from a bad but stable buffer zone against the spread of Islamic radicalism to a bad and unstable radical link. It has made the world not safer from terrorism but more vulnerable to it.

The Democratic message must be “we will be incredibly tough on the real terrorists - and here’s how.”<<<

We went to a book signing a few days age and heard a new joke. Actually, I am sure it is pretty old, but new to me. The mother of the mother/daughter writing team lives in Minnesota where there are two seasons – winter and road work.<<<

Here is the Bush foreign policy in a sentence - The Bush people hope that somehow it will all turn out right.

But as columnist Joseph L. Galloway writes – “That reminds me of a sign that used to decorate the Army Ranger School at Fort Benning, Georgia:”

"Hope is NOT a method unless you are the chaplain!"<<<

From a recent NY Times: Tens of thousands of followers of the Shiite cleric Moktada al-Sadr rallied in support of the Lebanese militia Hezbollah on Friday, denouncing Israel and the United States for igniting violence throughout the Middle East.

Reaction: Once again the Times got it wrong. Those were Cheney Iraqis welcoming us with open arms.<<<

Did you hear that Annette Bening is going to play White House reporter Helen Thomas in the upcoming Nixon movie, Dirty Tricks? No way! I’ve seen Helen Thomas and, Annettee Bening, you are no Helen Thomas.<<<

Today (Thursday) I am not a David Brooks fan. His column misleads. I’m generally no advocate of political extremism, but Brooks’ thesis is that a “McCain/Lieberman Party” represents compromise, which has always been preferable to what he calls hyper-partisanism.

“Hyper-partisans may have started with subtle beliefs, but their beliefs led them to partisanship and their partisanship led to malice and malice made them extremist, and pretty soon they were no longer the same people.”

Brooks labels this bad, but isn’t it primarily how the Republican Party itself was born? Slavery hating hyper-partisans made their former Whig Party irrelevant, and by doing so destroyed “the peculiar institution.” (slavery, not Whigism) There are some moral issues that demand extremism. Sending Americans to die fighting the wrong war is one.

That’s strike one, David.

Brooks also calls those he labels “net-root Democrats, vicious do-anything-to-win flamers.”
The campaign against Lieberman was hard and pointed but hardly vicious.

That’s strike two, David.

“On fiscal policy, the McCain-Lieberman Party sees a Republican Party that will not raise taxes and a Democratic Party that will not cut benefits, and understands that to avoid bankruptcy the country must do both.”

I’ll give Brooks a base hit on this one, but overall your hit does not offset those two strikes.<<<

And, by the way, isn’t it refreshing to see an incumbent challenged? It does damage to the perversion that has evolved in American politics that incumbents have a divine right to be re-nominated and re-elected.<<<

But as much as I applauded Lamont’s victory Tuesday, I was very uncomfortable seeing Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson standing behind him. And, another supporter, Michael Moore does not speak for this Democrat when he says that even though both John Kerry and John Edwards have changed their minds and are now anti-war, it’s too late: "Their massive error in judgment is, sadly, proof that they are not fit for the job. They sided with Bush, and for that, they may never enter the promised land."

Who elected or appointed Moore spokesman for any Democrat? Making a good anti-Bush film doesn’t make him a “moore” qualified spokesman for the party. In fact, he is sounding very much like the Pat Robertson of the left. Just another radical nut who is a legend in his own mind.<<<

Speaking of radical nuts, I give you the Vicious Veep. From the NY Times: “Vice President Dick Cheney, went so far as to suggest that the ouster of Mr. Lieberman might encourage ‘al Qaeda types.’”

Isn’t playing the traitor card at least the equivalent of playing the race card? I don’t call many people evil, but Cheney comes close. He is dirt in my book!<<<

There are places I remember – another in the series.

I have found something to love in every New England state. There is Cape Cod, and Boston in Massachusetts, and Pepe’s Pizza and Greenwich in Connecticut. One of my favorite Starbucks is in Rhode Island. I am crazy about almost everywhere in Vermont as well as Dartmouth and Portsmouth in New Hampshire.

But the state that I miss the most is Maine. My memory starts with Bar Harbor, our first ever Maine stop – great doughnuts and ice cream, (but not the lobster flavor) and walks through Acadia National Park where we picked the tiny wild blueberries.

Jumping to the south end, near Freeport, there is the Harasseket Lobster, our little seaside walk-up with fried shrimp, lobster rolls and great coconut cream pie.

Between the two lies Camden and Portland. The latter may well be my favorite small city in the United States, a place where they have succeeded in finding the proper balance between old and new. Camden is the location of the wonderful Inn At Sunrise Point with rooms named after local writers and the Atlantic splashing a few feet from our bed. It is high on the list of our favorite places to stay in the U. S. This small town is so cool that two of our favorite authors, Richard Russo and Tess Gerritsen, live there.

Maine, we shall return – soon!<<<

But before we do, there is the UK (and Harrods) to conquer. Especially the latter, whose motto is omnia omnibus ubique - everything for everyone everywhere.<<<