Feed the Children to Help Gulf States Relief

Feed the Children has a page set up regarding relief for victims of Hurricane Katrina. On that page is an audio clip from founder Larry Jones describing the relief effort. The clip is accompanied by pictures.

See it here.

The initial donations will be to help in the logistics, in particular fueling the trucks. More about Feed the Children tomorrow during the Blog-a-Thon.

Glenn Reynolds has got a clearinghouse of bloggers and their recommended charities here.

Here's N. Z. Bear's topic page.

Technorati tags: flood aid, Hurricane Katrina

Germany to Help in Katrina Relief?

Just heard via Laura Ingraham that Germany will assist in Hurricane Katrina relief. I haven't found a link yet, so this will be updated when I find confirmation.

UPDATE: 2005-8-30 2035 CDT: I haven't seen anything that confirms it. The closest I've seen is this lovely sentiment from one Joern Ehlers of WWF Germany:

[G]lobal warming had increased the intensity of hurricanes such as Katrina, but that it was unclear whether climate change had made them more common.

In general, ``natural catastrophes are more extreme and occur more often'' due to global warming, he said, noting that Germany had been struck with three severe floods in the past six years.

Though no conclusions can be drawn from a single event such as Katrina, that storm ``fits into the picture of modern climate researchers. It's a building block in the global warming theory.''

Aside from its tragic aftermath, Katrina might help people understand the urgency of global warming effects, Ehlers said. But do the Americans, infamous for consuming massive amounts of energy, have themselves to blame?

``I wouldn't go that far,'' Ehlers said. ``But it's a fact that the Americans have a big impact on the greenhouse effect.''

Ah, yes. Blame America First. Thanks a heap, Herr Ehlers. I guess that is the vaunted European Compassion coming to the surface. (The quote is from al-Guardian. See the story for an excerpt from a Jihadist cheering for the destruction.)

UPDATE II: 2005-09-01 1725 CDT: This link from Fox News lists the countries that have apparently offered help. Germany is, indeed, on the list.

UPDATE III: 2005-09-01 1726 CDT: Herr Ehlers is still a wanker and a Political Looter. (Hat tip to a Laura Ingraham caller this morning for the new term.)

Katrina lands

Weather.com reports that Katrina made landfall 2 hours ago south of Buras, Louisiana. Dry air slowed the top winds to 140 mph.

Biloxi, Mississippi appears to be in the crosshairs now.

There's a Hurricane Katrina Blog at USAToday. WDSU has one, too, and they broke the story that there is a tear in the Superdome roof. It's a little weird to look at the weather bug in the corner of WDSU's page and see the current weather is 80 degrees (F) with light rain at New Orleans airport.

Kate over at Small Dead Animals has a satellite photo putting the size of Katrina in perspective with New Orleans.

UPDATE: (from the above mentioned WDSU blog)

4 p.m.: East New Orleans Underwater
New video from a WDSU crew shows east New Orleans is underwater. Only the very tops of some cars can be seen, and on other streets, the water has risen past the second story of some homes. A man was seen wading through chest-deep water. He told the news crew that he was searching for injured or trapped people. -- WDSU.com Web Staff

I hope the would-be rescuer doesn't become a victim.

Breakthrough! Embryonic Stem Cells from... Skin Cells?

Harvard University researchers have apparently been able to derive embryonic stem cells from skin cells. This article doesn't really go into how. Being the WashingPost it is more interested in the political ramifications. Here's a bit:

The news that Harvard scientists have successfully converted human skin cells into embryonic stem cells -- without using a human egg or new embryo -- is likely to muddle the already complex debate over federal stem cell research policy.

(Hat tip: Laura Ingraham)

Isn't this great news, in general? Sen. Tom Coburn thinks so:

"All this is confirmation we will see breakthroughs without compromising ethical standards," said Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.), a physician who has led opposition to embryonic stem cell research. "We're not going to have to go that way if we can just be patient and fund the basic science."

And it wouldn't be a WashingPost story without a snarky quote like this: "[For lawmakers] who want to appear to support embryonic stem cell research without alienating their conservative base, it gives them something they can vote for even if it continues to trade patient interests for political symbolism," said R. Alta Charo, a professor at the University of Wisconsin medical and law schools.

What are the great breakthroughs that have come from fetal stem cell research to date that anyone would be 'trading patient interests'? Did I miss the big breakthrough?

UPDATE: Here's an AP story story that explains a bit of what they did. Essentially fusing an adult skin cell with an existing stem cell--such as from the existing lines which researchers have available--"reprograms" it to its embryonic state. I'm sure that's not a perfect description, but that's what came from the article. Here's the money quote:

"If future experiments indicate that this reprogrammed state is retained after removing the embryonic stem cell DNA — currently a formidable technical hurdle — the hybrid cells could theoretically be used to produce embryonic stem cells lines that are tailored to individual patients without the need to create and destroy human embryos," said a summary of the research reported on the Science site.

Custom cells per patient. How cool would that be?

A succinct policy analysis can be found here courtesy of the Health Law Blog.

UPDATE II (2005-08-29 0800 CDT): Welcome to readers of Wizbang, the Stones Cry Out, Daddy Pundit and Two or Three. If anyone has information on how a stemcell extracted in this way could be engineered such that there is only the genetic information from the skin cell, please post.

Cindy is Ready For Her Close-up, Mr. DeMille

Sadly, Evan Coyne Maloney of Brain Terminal fame doesn't have the bandwidth to shoot video while his current film is in production. Lights Camera Protest has some photos of Cindy Sheehan's circus tent. Note the shot of her being attended by a makeup artist.
(ht: Power Line)

The proprietor of Lights Camera Protest is promising more photos through tonight into tomorrow. Check back frequently.

Code Pink Protesters Outside Walter Reed Army Med Center

Every Friday night, Code Pink war protesters gather outside Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C. They bring, among other things, banners that say "Enlist Here Die for Halliburton" and flag-draped coffins.

You may not be surprised to learn that Code Pink believes they are helping the wounded soldiers. You may be further unsurprised that the wounded soldiers and their families aren't feeling the love.

The article is up on the front page at CNSNews.com, but their server is presently overloaded, courtesy of Laura Ingraham's show where I heard this outrage this morning. There is a video report available here if you can keep your blood pressure down.

The DC Chapter of Free Republic gathers on an opposite corner to counter-protest. Their homepage is here, and their experience from last Friday can be read here.

UPDATE: A question that I asked over at the Cotillion: Can some of the protections that have been applied to abortion providers be applied to Walter Reed? For instance, can the Code Pink for Peace idiotistas be kept a certain distance away?

UPDATE II: Cam Edwards has followed up on his site. Here's a fine post with lots of pix that I found via Gunn Nutt. Here's Gunn Nutt's post. (ht: Michelle Malkin)

Strange Bedfellows in Crawford, TX -- Part II

First David Duke sided with Cindy Sheehan's cause. Now, Neo-Nazis are on their way. Rantburger Atomic Conspiracy pointed out that the author of the announcement is an assistant to David Duke and a member of the organization "Stormfront".

Any takers on whether we'll get to see them on TV? I suspect if we do, the Big Media flak will do his utmost to disavow them. Nonetheless, there they are.

And they all can eat Ben and Jerry's ice cream while they are there, courtesy of founder Ben Cohen who's helping fund the Big Media circus.

(hat tip: Rantburg, LGF)

Ms. Sheehan Claims to Hear Voices Now

This article (ht: Rantburg) suggests that Cindy Sheehan may need some medication.

As Mrs. Davis put it on Rantburg, "She deserves to be ignored and left alone till she recovers."

New Michael Yon Dispatch

If you haven't already, go see Michael Yon's harrowing dispatch "Gates of Fire." Get well soon, LTC Kurilla.

Where Should the UN Go?

Take for a moment the statement "UN out of the US! US out of the UN!"

Where should it go? On Rantburg this morning, a commenter suggested Geneva. That would be far too easy for them, I think.

I vote instead to move them to Darfur. In that way the various UN functionaries can see first hand on the way to and from work just how useful the UN has become.

Scrappleface exclusive!

Normally I don't link to Scrappleface. Everyone already knows about it, and besides Scott's funnier than I am. However today I share with you this Scrappleface Exclusive: a leak of a draft letter from President Bush to Cindy Sheehan.

Good stuff, Scott. And it sounds pretty true to form, too.

Oh and while I'm at it, here's the story on Pat Robertson's fatwa.

Who Would Jesus Assassinate?

That is the question posed by Marvin Olasky at World Magazine. I won't leave you in suspense: the answer is 'no one'. The Bible offers no warrant for political assassination.

Here's a portion:

Mr. Robertson's comments also made the day of some Islamic groups. Under the press release heading "PAT ROBERTSON’S FATWA," the Muslim American Society went on offense, screaming that "someone should remind the darling of the Christian Right about the Ten Commandments. About the one that says 'thou shall not kill.' If that had been a Muslim cleric talking about killing a head of state, you would have never heard the end of it."

Two things:
1) As a person who considers himself part of the Christian Right, I can say that he's no darling of mine.
2) We are not hearing the end of it any time soon because Robertson once ran for President as a Republican. Therefore he is the piñata of the moment for Big Media who like to try to discredit any conservative based on the statements of any one of them.

When will it end? When Judge Roberts's confirmation hearings begin.

From the Comments at Small Dead Animals...

...comes the following:

this is all nice, but the fact remains that there is ample proof that the clinton white house actually issued terror alerts that directly resulted in the alert to the customs folks at port angles that stopped the millenium plot.

No proof was linked. I'm still inclined to believe that a Customs Agent did her job to the utmost when she noticed the twitchy behavior of the would-be bomber. No shame in that. The country could use dozens more just like her. (Perhaps retired police detectives?)

there is also direct proof that the state justice and defense dept people fromn clinton's watch warned the incoming bush team that terror attacks should be one of the main., if not the the main foriegn policy and law enforcement issue in the coming years.

If only there had been the usual, orderly transition from one administration to another in December 2000, rather than Al Gore's temper tantrum over the state of Florida.

Setting that aside, the world is still left to wonder what might have happened if Clinton had just taken custody of bin Laden when he had the chance.

Sorry: chances.

Or if he had responded to the USS Cole. Or the embassy bombings in Africa. Or backed up the military in Mogadishu when their Blackhawk went Down, rather than denying them further support.

We'll never know, but we can surmise that perhaps bin Laden wouldn't have taken the US as a paper tiger come 2001.

instead, even after being warned by the CIA,and several foriegn governments of immenent terror attacks "within the united states" bush stayed in crawford, doing nothing in the waining days of august 2001.

The President of the United States is never on vacation, whether it is GWB on his ranch in Crawford or Bill Clinton on the beach at Martha's Vineyard. I'm still a little puzzled as to what it is that Bush should have dropped everything to do? Brush up on his skills as a fighter pilot so that he, Super Bush, could have shot down all of the incoming aircraft?

as i recall,

Pardon me for standing back as you make the effort

ashkroft's responce to outgoing briefings o n the importance of stopping attacks by that ol meany osama bin laden was to reassign most of the FBI's top islamic terror experts to jobs outside their place of expertise, and put more money and effort into busting new orleans whore houses and bong manufacturers than into stopping 9/11...

Hindsight is always 20/20. If 'ashkroft' had marched into the flight schools and hauled the little jihadis out by their ears because he said he had evidence that these guys were plotting to destroy both towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, the Pentagon and the Capitol dome... what would you have said? Honestly... what would you have said? Probably that he'd been smoking something, or was some kind of jackbooted thug, assaulting the civil rights of Arabs wanting to learn not how to take off or land a commercial airliner, but only how to--you know--steer it.

but you little folks just keep yer little fantasies alive and never mind anything resembling fact...or adult perpective. sarge alsmosty thinks you kanukistani deserve yer own bush, but then i remeber theres all of like 12 of you morons, and the rest of yer people are quite smart and decent enough folks.

Is that what they call damning with faint praise when one considers the source?

(Source: Small Dead Animals "Humpty Gorelick Sat On A Wall")

Malkin and Maloney In Print

Michelle Malkin and Brian Maloney have an OpEd in the New York Post this morning.

It is largely a recounting of the story as we know it so far: the Gloria Wise Boys and Girls Club debacle; the lawsuit from Multicultural Radio against AAR's current ownership, Piquant LLC; the lawsuit of a former staffer and on-air talent for backpay. The latest episode centers around Air America founders Sheldon and Anita Drobny as they start yet another corporate entity called "Nova M".

Not much new to blog readers, but for the universe of people out there who don't read the blogs but do check in with the New York Post either in print or online, it will serve as a nice primer on the news that the NYT has not seen fit to print.

What if Air America Had Folded?

What if the Air America Radio network had folded immediately after the 2004 election? Would that have made it nothing but an in-kind donation to the Kerry campaign?

If They Must Sticker It...

--public school biology texts in Kansas, that is--here's an example I'd like to suggest that might hopefully keep everyone's respective undergarments from bunching:

"Evolution is not a comprehensive answer to the question of how life began. Indeed that is a separate subject. It is a description of how life diversified."

(adapted from the comments section below, since that post is about to slip off the front page.)

Things I Never Thought I'd Write

If I were of a more cynical bent, I might have titled this post "Even a stopped clock is right twice a day."

But here it goes: Maxine Waters is dead-bang right.

What is she right about? The impact of the Supremes' Kelo decision. Here's the quote
(column by Matt Welch in the LATimes, via RedState):

"It's like undermining motherhood and apple pie," Waters told the San Francisco Chronicle. "I mean, people's homes and their land — it's very important, and it should be protected by government, not taken for somebody else's private use."

In case you're worried about the end of the world being that much nigher, here's Nancy Pelosi and the NYT editorial board (ibid):

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) opposed Waters' amendment, arguing that the Supreme Court decision "is almost as if God has spoken." The New York Times editorial page, virtually alone among the country's newspapers, hailed the decision as "a welcome vindication of cities' ability to act in the public interest" and "a setback to the 'property rights' movement, which is trying to block government from imposing reasonable zoning and environmental regulations."

I shudder to think what sort of regulation it would take for the NYT to find it unreasonable in their eyes. And what gives with the scare quotes around property rights? Perhaps the NYT Editorial staff is entirely made up of renters?

You Can NEVER Have Too Much Cowbell

Today's Day-by-Day...

Another Thread in the AAR Tapestry

The Gloria Wise organization of The Bronx, New York, is not alone in wanting money back from owners of the Air America Radio network. Multicultural Radio--they owned the Chicago station, among others, and was the first big market to yank the welcome mat out from under AAR--also is seeking funds.

Michelle Malkin has the complaint and goes over its points here.

Brian Maloney will be following up over at his place today, too.

Stereotype: Men Are Bad at Remembering Dates

Yes... I passed my first blogoversary on Saturday while driving from Chicago to DC. It is hard to believe that an entire year has passed. (And so many fatuous and/or jejune things to say--Ed.)

AP Editors Meet: Better War Coverage?

Jack Kelly has posted a story about an editors' meeting at AP, written up at the New York Times. Jack mentions servicemen's group life insurance as one way to get more reporters over there.

An interim step would be for the AP to pick up the dispatches of Michael Yon. He's already there and writing rings around the Green Zone-bound journos. How about Arthur Chrenkoff? He's got a link for just that kind of purpose (click here, editors) (I asked him if he would do it if asked by one of the big wire services; I hope he gets a chance to read his comments section). Arthur also nominates Michael Yon, incidentally. Chester would be another good pick.

The point is there are people already there and doing a great job, and with the monetary backing of an organization like AP, guys like Michael Yon wouldn't have to rely on the kindness of strangers hitting his Paypal link in order to buy film and other supplies.

Able Danger - Part I: What's Data Mining?

Hiawatha Bray's got an article up at the Boston Globe about what Data Mining is. If you use one of those grocery store discount cards--"Fresh Values", "Giant Values"--to get a few dollars off the grocery store bill every week, your data is being mined in a similar way, if for a different purpose.

The "Total Information Awareness", later termed "Terrorism Information Awareness" program was championed by Admiral John Poindexter. Given his Iran-Contra involvement (his felony conviction was overturned, but the damage to his reputation can never be overturned), it was no surprise that his program was shut down.

Could it have rolled up all the hijackers? Poindexter doesn't think so. Like pretty much any problem, the information necessary to solve it only seems obvious after the fact.

(via Irish Pennants)

Strange Bedfellows in Crawford, TX

I haven't written much about Cindy Sheehan, the Vacaville, CA mom who lost her son last year in Iraq. People deal with loss in different ways, and in her case, she has immersed herself in the far left causes that she held even before the war began.

Today, though, I found an article on Rantburg describing as strange a political ally for Ms. Sheehan as can be in David Duke. From the second line of Mr. Duke's article comes this, er, nugget: "Courageously she has gone to Texas near the ranch of President Bush and braved the elements and a hostile Jewish supremacist media..."

I wonder how many of the assorted throng -- assorted in that they are tending to tout their own causes for the gathered media -- share the same anti-Jewish sentiments. I doubt we'll get a show of hands on the nightly news.

In the meantime, Sheehan's protest has apparently strained her 28 year marriage to the breaking point. The Smoking Gun has the August 12th filing. (They've been separated since June 1, actually.) I had wondered for the last week if there was a Mr. Sheehan. He has refused to comment publicly about his wife's actions, which explains why there haven't been many mentions of him.
(also via Rantburg)

UPDATE 2005-08-16 0900 EDT: Am I emotional? Yes, my first born was murdered. Am I angry? Yes, he was killed for lies and for a PNAC Neo-Con agenda to benefit Israel. So wrote Ms. Sheehan to the editors of ABC's Nightline back on March 15. David Duke and Cindy Sheehan: Birds of a Feather? I'm not saying, I'm just saying...

(Christopher Hitchens wonders aloud about it, too. I know I'm going to read and learn.)

UPDATE to the UPDATE: LyfLines takes a look at what AP has chosen to run regarding Ms. Sheehan, and what portions of the public record they haven't mentioned. Interesting stuff.

Also "Open War" has been declared on Michelle Malkin. I'm not sure what they called the previous hate they spewed on her.

UPDATE to the updated UPDATE: James Tarranto has more information on Ms. Sheehan. Did you know that she has two other children, alive and well in California?

Able Danger - prelude

I mentioned a little while ago that Gorelick should have been testifying before the 9-11 Commission, not sitting on it.

Now there is tangible proof that the wall between Intelligence and Law Enforcement prevented the identification of 9-11 hijacker Mohammed Atta and his cell to the FBI a YEAR before the hijackings took place.

Gorelick may not have built the wall, but she sure put the razor wire on top to ensure that if someone tried to circumvent it, they'd be toast.

More to come... but in the meantime, Ed Morrissey's got a pretty good set of articles, indexed here.

Click4Cathy: Success

Day-by-Day reports that Operation Click4Cathy is a success.

NYT's Most Recent Mention of Gloria Wise

Here is, as of 1750 CDT, the most recent mention in the New York Times of the Gloria Wise organization.

For those who don't want to register to see the archive, it is dated June 8, 2003. Here's the portion that it hit on:

One memorable incident involved Molotov cocktails. Soon after Charles Rosen, the director of the Gloria Wise Boys and Girls Club, a Coop City organization, spoke vehemently against several candidates, someone threw two Molotov cocktails at the building that houses the club, causing slight damage. Although some people involved in the elections denied that the episode had anything to do with the contest, many others disagreed.

The story is about elections to the Co-Op City Board of Directors.

If you are registered with the NYT, here's a link you can use to check on it from time to time.

To recap, Rosen resigned last week. And now his replacement has set an end-date, too. (Registration required... et tu, NYPost?)

A tip of the White Sox cap to BizzyBlog for the idea on hitting the NYT archives search. He's got some others, too. Check out that post here.

(Another tip of the cap to Brian Maloney for pointing out the fun stuff at BizzyBlog today.)

UPDATE 2005-08-11-2010 CDT: NYT publishes the story! (reg. req'd) (eagle-eyed Michelle Malkin spotted it in the NY/Region section.) It isn't much. Let's see if they follow up.

UPDATE to the UPDATE: No sign of this story in their search yet. Maybe because it is dated 8/12. I'll try it again tomorrow... and it is there now (2005-08-12 0830 CDT).

UPDATE to the updated UPDATE 2005-08-12 1030 CDT: The part about Michelle Malkin was dropped between last night and today. Red State Rant has a bit and link that does the comparison.

CJR Wonders Why No Coverage of AAR's Woes

The Columbia Journalism Review is covering the lack of coverage of the Air America Radio/Gloria Wise Boys and Girls Club imbroglio. It does seem to have all the elements for a good Big Media story. (via Michelle Malkin and Brian Maloney)

In Brian's roundup of the AAR stories, the AAR anonymous apologists have been coming out of the wood work to try to change the subject. The comments thread includes (so far) a basic misunderstanding of the actual Enron scandal, some bashing of Michelle Malkin and that old lefy bugaboo... the meaning of the word "is". As in "Air America is paying the loan."

Not yet they haven't. Based on their missed payroll problem it is rather in doubt that they will be able to. And if the Boys and Girls club drops the Gloria Wise Community Center, will AAR see a need to pay back the money at all?

The Jet Set Chick Explores: Bad Album Art

Kory found a roundup of excruciatingly bad album covers. Then she found another. Some of them are funny, others disturbing... and one of them I've seen before. (Though not in MY album collection, thankfully. The story is in her comments section.)

Check it out here!

Highly Recommended: Peter Wood on Evolution

Peter Wood's article in NRO is one of the most balanced and articulate summaries on Evolution, evolution and Creationism I've ever read. Especially interesting to me is the admission that portions of big-E Evolution are just as speculative, ultimately unprovable and doctrinaire as any part of Creationism.

For the record, I believe that the portion of Genesis wherein it is written that God molded Adam from clay is metaphor--indicating, perhaps that He imbued a creature made of meat with a spirit after his image. I believe in dinosaurs, even if they weren't mentioned in the Bible. I certainly believe without a doubt that finch's beaks change from age to age--small-e evolution in action.

What I do not believe is that a finch ever becomes anything other than a little-bit-different looking finch, and not say, a raptor when times are really tough, and there just aren't any seeds to crack with the old beak style, and a softer, meatier source of food just becomes too tempting to ignore.

Bully for you if you believe that--or something very like it--but take a read of Peter Wood's article and see if you can't admit that it is indeed just a belief.

UPDATE: I picked up at least one reader from another site linking this one. The article states that Wood's concept of big-E Evolution is a strawman constructed by Wood. I'm not so sure about that. While I'll certainly agree that biological scientists may not hold a view like "Big-E" Evolution, it is widely held in America. Indeed it is the orthodox "scientific!" view. Any heretic that would contradict that view is held up for ridicule (see: Kansas Board of Education, labeling textbooks).

How's your clicking finger?

In pretty good shape? Good. Head over to Chris Muir's Day-by-Day and read the 8/10 strip. It explains what the Click4Cathy banner ad is about. Then click it. It doesn't take much, but it's all they need right now.

Heck, if I can vote a few dozen times for Scott Podsednik to go to the All-Star Game, I can surely do the same for a vastly better cause.

UPDATE 2005-08-11-1030 CDT: Chris has the before and after of the Cancer Ablation center's site counter. After one day it has gone up more than 101,000.

What's Love Got to Do With It...

... was going to be the title of a post I've been kicking around for the better part of a year on the topic of same-sex marriage.

Note that I say "same-sex marriage" rather than "Gay marriage" which strongly implies sexual orientation. The upshot is that the law wouldn't explicitly mention that two people need to love each other in a sexual way, and therefore wouldn't stop any two arbitrary individuals from wedding for the purpose of garnering some form of benefits.

Well... I was too late, so I can't say "I told you so". Two fellas up in Canada are planning to do it. And Kate from The Road Kill Diaries has an article on the story now.

I tried posting a comment, but the server's busy. I'll post it here:
Will the happy couple be registering at Canadian Tire?
and
Does the new Canadian Law have same-sex divorce worked out?

Day 11 and the New York Times Still Has Nothing to Say

Macho Nachos (did I mention I love that name?) points out what the New York Times has to say while they say nothing about Air America Radio and the Gloria Wise Boys and Girls Club.

Could it be because the New York Times is all about Manhattan and the Hamptons in the summertime and doesn't know or care about the plight of poor kids in The Bronx?

If it had been shown that an oil company--or better yet, a tobacco company--had dipped into the till of a charity you can bet the Times would have been all over it, followed closely by the West Coast Wannabes.

Air America Begs for Bumper Sticker Ideas

Given their cash flow problems, AAR must have fired its own marketing staff. If you'd like to donate your expertise, here's the link to the Al Franken Show blog entry.

Comment number 1 is a beauty:

I have a few:
DRINK LIBERALLY (Get the government to pay for everybody's beer, and if a bartender cuts you off, whine that your civil rights are being violated.)

AIR AMERICA RADIO (Formerly proudly funded by the Gloria Wise Boys and Girls Clubs of New York!)

AAR: (Ask me about our creative funding opportunities!)

AIR AMERICA RADIO! (Radio for those who don't have time to think.)

AIR AMERICA RADIO! (Our bumperstickers will be around, even if we're not!)

AIR AMERICA RADIO! (Evan Cohen, please give us a call--Evan? Hello?)

AIR AMERICA RADIO! (Liberalism at it's Finest!) (Mocking you-don't get too excited)

AIR AMERICA RADIO! (We didn't INTEND to be a non-profit organization; do we qualify for OUR OWN government funding yet? Those Boys and Girls Clubs can't be trusted longterm to meet our needs.)

AIR AMERICA RADIO! (Al Franken's {HEART'S} Rush Limbaugh!)

AIR AMERICA RADIO! (Our staff will soon BE on Welfare!)

AIR AMERICA RADIO! (Evan-PLEASE call! It's Really Really Important!)

AIR AMERICA RADIO! (I guess Bill O'Reilly was right about us, after all!)

How long will that comment last? Maybe a long while. They don't appear to pay much mind to the comments.

(A tip of the hat to Brian Maloney for finding the comment thread.)

East Westbound and Down

On the road again today.

Brian Maloney's got the latest outrage in the ongoing saga of Air America's seeming inability to pay the agreed upon sum back to the Gloria Wise Boys and Girls Club in the Bronx. (This chapter involves Elliot Spitzer.)

(Hat tip for the title: Smokey and Bandit)

UPDATE: (2005-08-08-1102 CDT) Brian Maloney has a leaked memo from AAR stating that pay roll deposits weren't going to be made on Friday as expected, but rather on Monday. That's bad for morale, but now it is a little more clear on why the Gloria Wise Boys and Girls Club hasn't gotten its money yet. I'm not sure why AAR thinks September is going to be any better from a cash flow standpoint.

Gloria Wise to Air America Radio: Where's Our Money?

Over on the Radio Equalizer, Brian Maloney reports that the Air America accounts payable to the Gloria Wise Boys and Girls Club is near $900,000, and the Club is ready to receive their money back any time now (see also: New York Post article, though registration is required).

"Air America reached a legal agreement to have that loan repaid in full," beginning this summer, said Martta Rose, a spokeswoman for the Bronx-based Boys & Girls Club, which is the subject of a probe by the city Department of Investigation.

At the same time, AAR is holding its collective wallet closed, stating that they're waiting for 'direction' from New York's Department of Investigation.

Rose says that the Gloria Wise organization is cooperating fully with the investigation. That doesn't exactly answer AAR's need for 'direction', but it is good to hear that the nonprofit organization has nothing to hide.

This entry from Macho Nachos may explain the nature of the aforementioned legal agreement to repay the loan. I say "may" because it asks further questions which are still open.

UPDATE: (1630 EDT) It centers on what what was sold. Piquant LLC didn't buy Progress Media, they bought its assets.
"Did Progress Media pay off its creditors with the proceeds of the sale?"
and
"Did Progress Media get a fair market price for the sale?"
are the two questions.

And one of my own: Where is Evan Cohen?

UPDATE: (2005-08-05-0917 EDT): Macho Nachos (love that name! Makes me wish I had thought of it) reports that New York's Department of Investigation

"...has done nothing and given no instruction preventing payment of money owed to Gloria Wise [Boys & Girls Club]. Any statements to the contrary are inaccurate," said DOI spokesman Keith Schwam.

Now all that remains is for Piquant LLC to find its wallet and follow through.

UPDATE: (2005-08-05-1530 EDT): Rantburg has an article up from CNS that summarizes the situation. I should add that there's been no change to AAR's statement about how appalled they are, as of this update.

License Received

It being 96 degrees and a similar percentage of humidity, I figured today was as good a day as any to walk from the Chinatown Metro stop over to the Superior Court of DC on Indiana Avenue to pick up our marriage license.

And so... it is now in our apartment, good indefinitely. (I think I sweated off a couple pounds for it, which can't be too bad a thing.)

Last night we met with a wedding coordinator from the church at the Galleria at Tyson's Corner (big, indoor mall with a lot of high-line department stores). She said it sounded like our ideas for the ceremony were pretty straight forward.

Prior to all that we stopped at Tiffany & Co. to pick up the wedding bands.

Nine weeks to go.

Another Great Piece From Trodwell

Trodwell further unpacks his reasons for why he enjoys listening to GWB speak. He contrasts him with Reagan and then goes into a history of US political discourse. Very interesting reading.

He even captures the (Bill) Clinton experience very eloquently here:

And there have been some, e.g. Clinton, who have spoken well to explain pedestrian ideas, or to attempt to excuse their errors and misdeeds.

Read it all here, and not just because he sez I'm right. (And I'm happy to help. Keep up the good work.)

Indians Passed the Twins?

When did that happen? Granted, being a White Sox fan, it doesn't really matter to me which team is more than a dozen games behind, but I was a little surprised to see the Twins fade to third. (Sorry guys. Congratulations, Hugh.)

That'll probably be my last baseball entry for awhile.

New York Times Hits All-Time Low

From Drudge: The New York Times is going to pry into the adoption papers of Judge John Roberts's children. Limbaugh mentioned it as well.

I can't imagine what the drool-cases in the New York Times newsroom are hoping to find in these records. What could they possibly find that would be germane to Judge Roberts's confirmation hearing? I hope they are shut down, and shut down hard for it.

Do you get the New York Times? Are you disgusted yet? You can contact them here.

UPDATE (2005-08-05-0945 EDT): From Power Line:

Sources familiar with the matter told FOX News that at least one lawyer turned the Times down flat, saying that any effort to pry into adoption case records, which are always sealed, would be reprehensible.

The New York Times is now forced to fumble through a dictionary to look up the meaning of "reprehensible".

Michael Barone Enters the Blogosphere

As Hugh Hewitt pointed out, when a talent the likes of Michael Barone comes to the ballfield, how can it be anything but a good thing?

Michael Barone wrote on the 3rd about the GOP turn out in Ohio and how it should be a cause for worry among Republican leadership. I don't know about "worry" but there is something they can do, namely stop nominating so-called "moderates". Conservatives win.

A Canadian's View of GWB

Trodwell has penned an essay on Bush, on the occasion of his recess appointment of John Bolton as UN Ambassador. It's a good article and my only quibble was with "Bush is the first WYSIWYG President – what you see is truly what you get." Actually I believe George W. Bush to be the second in my lifetime, the first being Ronald Reagan. They didn't call him the Great Communicator for nothing.

Read it all here.

UPDATE: (2005-08-05-0913 EDT) Greets to all ye readers of Right Thinking People.

LOML: science geek

And I say that, of course, in a loving way. (Who are you to talk?--Ed.) Today she discovered a site selling microbes. No, not actual microbes... stuffed, plush toy microbes, millions of times actual size.

Yes, you too can be the owner of a giant giardia, or a yeast spore, or something nastier like one of these:


Note the little knife and fork on the flesh-eating streptococcus. I wasn't able to find a gonnorrhea to see if it, in fact, has little clapping hands. Click the pic for a bigger view and if you should want to catch an Ebola without fear.

Meanwhile...

Michael Yon and Jack Kelly report the death of a fellow journalist in Iraq.

...in Ohio a Republican remains in the seat vacated by Rob Portman. The Democrat candidate made a strong showing, however, losing by only 4 points. People will be looking at that for a week or so, and I'm sure the DNC will be claiming a moral victory and momentum for 2006 and 2008. It's nonsense, considering the fundamental dishonesty of the Democrat's campaign ads. That a man who called GWB an SOB would open his advertisement with the words of GWB and then the candidate saying that he agrees is a bit disingenuous. Oh... and the ads didn't even mention that he was a Democrat. So if the Ansar al-Donkey wants to claim that as a bellweather, they will be running ashamed of their party affiliation in 2006 and 2008 and narrowly losing.

...Air America Radio is still going with their statement that they love the Boys and Girls Clubs and that the decision has been made 'months ago' to reimburse the Gloria Wise club for the transaction. (Even if '[t]he current owners of Air America Radio [Piquant LLC] have no obligation to Progress Media's business activities.') Touching. Just send the check. Or do it in installments. Just give those kids the activities they need.
(As I've written elsewhere, I fully admit to schadenfreud as I watch a bunch of Lefties fend off a "You want to put poor kids out on the street!" type of attack... the very sort of attack they've leveled at Republicans for decades.)