Thanks, Misha...

Many thanks to Misha over at Wallpaper for linking me while she's off on vacation (secretly running guns for the CIA?). She's puzzlingly liberal, but married to an old friend of mine, so I'll give her grace. Besides, I'm sure the stars will align someday and she will see the glorious light of Ronald Reagan.

It Takes A Village Witch Doctor

Once upon a time, not long ago, a public figure wrote a book called "It Takes A Village." The book took its inspiration from the wisdom of African culture, where it is customary (usually, I suppose) for entire villages to take interest in the raising of the village children.

That's all well and good, but first of all - since when has African culture proven a guiding light in terms of social ethics and customs? I'm sorry, but female genital mutilation, cannibalism, high infant mortality rates, demon worship and rampant genocide don't give me much confidence in terms of overall societal health.

If you want it straight, it takes a family to raise a child. One dad, one mom and one eye on God.

Perhaps what that public figure really meant was, "It Takes A Village Witch Doctor." That seems more in line with liberal multi-cultural thought these days.

Yet Another Tale For Our Times: Frank the Frankfurter

Yet another tale from the lost anthology of Harvard stories from the 70s, lost during a LSD experiment that went out of control.

Frank the Frankfurter

Once upon a time there lived a young man named Frank. Frank had a nice tan, even though he had never been to the beach or visited one of those tanning salons frequented by hairy-chested men and bleached blonde women. Frank was of slim build and didn't seem to have any arms, but this did not stop him from holding down an excellent government job. At his job, Frank sat at a desk and pushed papers around and occasionally answered the phone in order to inform people that their Schedule Y33 was either improperly filled out or was sadly out of date. On certain days, he sent out threatening notices to people who lived in Wisconsin.

One day, while eating a raisin Danish during his break in the cafeteria, a fellow named Dan who had just gotten new glasses looked at him and said, "Hey, Frank's a frankfurter! A really big frankfurter!" Someone else found some good quality stone-ground mustard and then they sat around and ate Frank.

The moral of this story is that you simply cannot trust the government, even if you work for them.

Thought-Provoking Book: Medved's Auto-Biography

Right Turns. Michael Medved's auto-biography.

Very thought-provoking. He grew up in a classic liberal Jewish family, thinking and believing all the classic left-wing thoughts. And then slowly began changing during college and during his involvement in several Democratic campaigns.

You don't have to subscribe to conservative philosophy to garner from books like this. Medved's a class act. Well worth reading, so turn off that damn TV and read it.

Well, at least read something.

Summer Is Ending & My Peanut Butter Cups Are Gone

Summer has almost come to an end. The wind carries a slight chill on its breath. The tomato crop is at its splendid height of delicious heirlooms of all colors and sizes.

Sadly, though, I have eaten all the peanut butter cups that my mother-in-law bought me at Trader Joe's.

All things must come to an end.

Plain-Spoken Popes

What else should Popes be but plain-spoken? I'm glad that our newest Pope isn't averse to putting his foot in his mouth these days in terms of political correctness. His quote is correct in my book: Islam has brought nothing but misery to this world. Who's going to vote for a religion that treats women as possessions, and Jews and Christians as people to be either subjugated or killed?

I'm sorry, but anyone who believes Islam is a religion of peace is either stupid, delusional or just doesn't know a thing about Islam. I've been reading some histories recently about Islam and Muhammed (may porridge be upon his head). None of it's pretty. To be blunt, he was a class-A psycho with a penchant for power. He made up his revelations to fit whatever circumstance he found himself in. Anyone with an ounce of sense reading the Kuran can see that.

One of the very interesting concepts in the Kuran is that of the House of War and the House of Peace. Basically, if you adhere to Islam, you belong to the House of Peace (peace is essentially equated with obedience to Allah). If you don't adhere to Islam, then you belong to the House of War and are therefore open game for Islamics to wage jihad upon you until you either convert or pay the dhimmi tax of subjugation. That concept of two Houses is a permanent dynamic in Islam. No way of getting around it.

The other interesting concept in the Kuran is that believers are allowed to knuckle under to the laws and customs of a country they find themselves in if they are in the minority. Therefore, they can bide their time until they build up sufficient power to change that society into one that bows to Islam. Interesting. We're definitely seeing that going on in Europe these days.

Anyway. Let's hear it for plain-spoke Popes. Nice hat, sir.

CBS Nightly News and Spinach

A CBS camera crew is right now setting up on our ranch and preparing to shoot a live segment for tonight's nightly news with Ms. Couric. Wonderful. Spinach and E Coli are obviously the topic.

I hope no one else gets sick, and I hope the fallout doesn't put some farmers out of business.

I can't stand TV. That's a bit of a non sequiter, but I can't help saying it.

Back Out Of The Hospital

Well, I just got out of the hospital for the third time this year. I must say that I'm extremely grateful for hospitals, but I cannot stand them at the same time. Who loves being in a hospital?

We probably have one of the best health care systems in the world (and, no, let's not get into an argument about the economics of that system, which is a slightly different issue). I'm deliriously grateful for it, as it's saved my life three times this year (this is the Chinese Year of the Doctor for me).

Still, I cannot stand hospitals. They're so bureaucraticized, sterile, noisy, impersonal and invasive ("here, put on this gown that will be constantly revealing your buttocks to all").

But, I'm grateful. I'm grateful...