June 1, 2004
Busy morning today, but I wanted to show you a couple of pictures from the Little Admiral's 2nd birthday party, which unfortunately the First Mate and I had to miss. Thankfully, Sean from Everything I Know Is Wrong took a few snaps for me to enjoy. (Sean and I are related through my son's marriage, and he's a terrific guy with a terrific blog -- check it out.) I heard that she had been showing everyone a microscopic "owie" on her knee and demanding that everyone kiss it. In the first picture, you'll see the only one who refused, Sean's son Connor, who apparently won't indulge such nonsense! The pictures are in the extended entry. I'll be back to regular blogging a little later on....
Continue reading "The Little Admiral Turns 2" »
The Washington Post's Evelyn Nieves analyzes John Kerry's poor polling in New Jersey, a traditional Democratic bastion of support that Al Gore carried by sixteen points in 2000. Recent polls indicate Kerry's support drifting downwards, to the point where the Quinnipiac poll of 5/10-16 shows Bush within the margin of error in a three-way race. Democratic activists proclaim their confidence in the safety of New Jersey, but as Nieves reports, privately they express concern over the lack of momentum in the Kerry campaign: Democratic Party officials here and nationally dismissed the poll as a fluke. They pointed to the fundraising records that Kerry is breaking, to the polls that keep looking better for him as they get worse for Bush, and to the attention that Kerry will receive when the news focuses more on the campaign. One poll in New Jersey, they added, will not stand up when the state's...
The Justice Department released documentation on the Jose Padilla case, the only US citizen seized outside the battlefield being held as an enemy combatant, showing the scope of the al-Qaeda contacts and plans with which Padilla was involved: Jose Padilla, a former Chicago gang member held as a terrorism suspect for two years, sought to blow up hotels and apartment buildings in the United States in addition to planning an attack with a "dirty bomb" radiological device, the government said Tuesday. The Justice Department, under pressure to explain its indefinite detention of a U.S. citizen as an "enemy combatant," detailed Padilla's alleged al-Qaida training in Afghanistan and contacts with the most senior members of the terrorist network, his travel back into the United States and preparations to rent apartments and set off explosives. The DoJ shows how Padilla signed an application to join al-Qaeda and worked with known AQ leaders...
Iraq took large steps towards independence and representative government with the formal creation of an interim Iraqi executive and cabinet, which will replace the US-formed Iraqi Governing Council. The IGC, which suffered from its association with the occupation, used its considerable political heft to install its own choices in key positions despite some opposition from both the US and the UN representative Lakhdar Brahimi. The BBC reports that President Bush waxed ebullient about these developments and the people chosen by the Iraqis: US President Bush has welcomed Iraq's interim government saying it represents a broad cross-section of society and has the "talent" to guide the nation. He said that the first priority for the new leadership will be to pave the way to nationwide elections by January. Mr Bush insisted the US had played no role in selecting the new cabinet, and instead praised the UN for their input. The...
In today's NRO, Dr. Henry Miller diagnoses Gore's major malfunction: Narcissistic Personality Disorder. According to the good doctor, the diagnostic criteria for this malady is "a pervasive pattern of grandiosity (in fantasy or behavior), need for admiration, and lack of empathy, beginning by early adulthood and present in a variety of contexts." Among Gore’s symptoms are: - "a grandiose sense of self-importance (e.g., exaggerates achievements and talents, expects to be recognized as superior without commensurate achievements)." Most dramatically represented by his claim to have invented the internet. - preoccupation "with fantasies of unlimited success, power, brilliance, beauty, or ideal love; believes that he or she is 'special' and unique and can only be understood by, or should associate with, other special or high-status people (or institutions)." Constantly portrays himself as the man with all the answers to the worlds problems both political and environmental, enough said. - "requires excessive admiration."...
It's Friday, and so it must be time for the next Captain's Caption Contest! In honor of the new Roland Emmerich film, The Day After Tomorrow, Captain's Quarters has adjusted its normal contest material in order to highlight the terrible global warming problem that faces our planet. In an exclusive (yeah, sure), CQ has identified a major source of hot, noxious gas -- and all we need is your description of the image: It looks like John Kerry can breathe a sigh of relief this week! The contest stays open until 6 PM CT on Tuesday, June 1, at which time our guest judge will decide which of your entries wins out. Enter as often as you like, no purchase necessary, winner need not be present to win, bribes freely accepted ... you know the drill. Make sure you put your entry into the comments section -- e-mail will be...
Iran reversed itself today and finally admitted that it had imported parts for nuclear centrifuges designed to create weapons-grade fissile material, but still claims that the US falsely accuses it of pursuing a nuclear-weapons program, according to the AP and CNN. The AP covers the Iranian reversal: In a reversal, Iran has acknowledged importing parts for advanced centrifuges that can be used to enrich uranium, the U.N. atomic watchdog agency said Tuesday in a confidential report obtained by The Associated Press. ... In an interview with The Associated Press before the report was leaked, U.S. Undersecretary of State John R. Bolton accused Tehran of engaging in "denial and deception. ... We are convinced that they are pursuing a clandestine program to acquire nuclear weapons," he said. ... Iran has rejected the U.S. allegations, saying its nuclear program is geared only toward generating electricity. CNN, meanwhile, covers another aspect of the...
The ever-reliable NewsMax (hah!) ran a story today that my friends on the right just can't resist -- that John Kerry, in the middle of a presidential campaign, with every major media outlet haunting each step, on a day honoring fallen American soldiers, flipped the bird to a protesting veteran: Democratic senator - and certain presidential nominee - John F. Kerry gave the middle finger to a Vietnam veteran at the Vietnam Memorial Wall on Memorial Day morning, NewsMax.com has learned. ... Just then Kerry - in front of the school children, other visitors and Secret Service agents - brazenly 'flashed the bird' at Sampley and then yelled out to everyone, "Sampley is a felon!" Look, as anyone who reads my blog knows, I am no fan of the most liberal Massachussetts Senator. I think he's dangerously vacillating, pompous, and narcissistic. But he's no idiot, and the last thing John...
Howell Raines writes an editorial in tomorrow's London Guardian expressing serious concerns about John Kerry as a candidate, and in the process exposes the obvious bias he inculcated into the New York Times as editor-in-chief before his ignominious fall from the Jayson Blair affair. Raines' Bush-hatred comes through, loud and clear, even while he argues persuasively that John Kerry hasn't demonstrated any of the requisite skills to beat the incumbent. First off, though, Raines displays an amazing lack of historical knowledge that explains why the New York Times only discovers homelessness during Republican administrations: As America's first war-hero candidate since John F Kennedy, he ought to be leading the national discussion on what went wrong in Iraq. Raines either forgets or never knew that the first President Bush flew fighter missions in World War II, was shot down in the Pacific, and didn't come back to the US afterwards to...
Just an update for everyone -- the First Mate has returned home, with her blood pressure stabilized for the moment and all symptoms cleared up. Even better, I spoke with the transplant center this afternoon, and while they still need to review all of the records and doctors' notes from this incident, they believe she can stay on schedule for the transplant. They'll make a final determination later this week. Thank you, thank you, thank you all for your thoughts and prayers this week. They have been more of a blessing than you know. We're both blessed to have the support of such a wonderful group of people on all points of the political spectrum....
June 2, 2004
In a special election that both parties maintain holds special significance for the November contests, Democrat Stephanie Herseth narrowly held off Republican Larry Diedrich to take over the remainder of Bill Janklow's term in Congress. Herseth's narrow margin, however, means the two will meet again in November: With 96 percent of precincts reporting, Herseth had 124,647 votes, or 51 percent, to Larry Diedrich's 121,719 votes, or 49 percent. ... Her victory gave the Democrats two straight triumphs this year in special elections waged for GOP-held seats, and coincided with Democratic claims that a national tide is running their way ahead of the fall campaign. Jay Reding live-blogged the election, which shows you what a dedicated blogger Jay is; would anyone else in the blogosphere live-blog an election in South Dakota? His conclusion: At the same time, it's a Pyrrhic victory for the Democrats. Stephanie Herseth may give the Democrats a...
How's this for a slap in the face? Jessica McClure, who held the attention of the nation as a toddler when she fell into an abandoned well 17 years ago, is now a high school graduate. In October 1987, when she was 18 months old, Jessica slipped into an uncovered eight-inch-wide pipe in her aunt's yard. Crews struggled for two and a half days to rescue her, digging a deep parallel shaft and then a 63-inch horizontal tunnel through bedrock to join the two shafts. They finally brought her to the surface in a moment covered on live television. For those of us old enough to remember, the Baby Jessica story riveted the nation, one of the first moment-to-moment crisis not involving war or an assassination attempt that kept people glued to the 24-hour news sources for constant updates. And it sure doesn't seem like 17 years have gone by,...
In this period of rapidly rising gasoline prices, you may feel relieved to hear that the state of Minnesota has focused on the pump prices to make sure that there are no shenanigans going on. However, that feeling might be fleeting when you find out that they're keeping prices up: With gasoline prices painfully high, it may be surprising for some to learn that state regulators are penalizing retailers for, well, for not charging Minnesota motorists enough for gasoline. The Commerce Department snagged its first offenders last week under a 2001 law that aims to prevent predatory pricing by requiring gas merchants to charge 8 cents more per gallon than they pay for fuel. Arkansas-based Murphy Oil was penalized $70,000 for violating the law prohibiting below-cost sales. The company operates 10 service stations in Minnesota on property it leases from retail giant Wal-Mart. If the oil companies got together and...
The judges have returned with the winners of the special Global Warming edition of the weekly Captain's Caption Contest! Edward Yee did the honors this week, and did he have his work cut out for him. We received a near-record 107 entries this week from the blogosphere's most creative readership. In fact, Al Gore was so stunned by the response that he had the breath knocked out of him: Here are the winners: Captain's Award (Most Original) -- Donald S. Crankshaw: Fighting to contain a violent yawn at his own words, Al Gore is mistaken for a raving lunatic. You Have The Conn #1 (Great Minds Think Alike) -- Wacky Hermit: "wh- wh- heeeeee-- wh- wh- heeeeee..." "We can see the head! Now push! That's it, push with the contractions!" You Have The Conn #2 (Where One Man Had Gone Before) -- Scotty: In a certain epiphany for the ex-vice...
Thanks to reader Bipin Pathak, who read my post from last night discussing the ludicrous Howell Raines article in today's London Guardian, and to which Glenn Reynolds and Neal Boortz kindly linked. Bipin brought a letter from Albert Einstein to my attention which notes that Raines may indeed have followed a long and storied tradition in his stewardship of the New York Times. This letter currently stands for auction at Christie's, but an excerpt is posted on line: "You see that I have retained my black humor despite Palestine, corrupt American politics and daily reading of the N.Y. Times which doesn't even lie honestly but distorts the truth with malicious intent." So, as my intrepid reader points out, I keep pretty good company. (Mom will be proud of me!) The more things change, unfortunately, the more they stay the same -- which Einstein's work might also address ......
I think all of us in the blogosphere wanted to do something special for the veterans, both living and those who gave the last, full measure, for this Memorial Day. Quite a few posted touching stories, and of course I put the story of Captain Ben Salomon on my site, who died saving dozens of wounded Americans on Saipan. However, I think one of the best I've seen are at INDC Journal, where Bill went out with his digital camera and got wonderful pictures and stories from the veterans themselves. Bill's post turned out to be so large that he had to break it into two parts. Make sure you read them both. Bill has a personal story to tell in the second part, so make sure you read it all the way through. I dare you to do it without tears....
Mayor James Hahn announced today that he now supports using the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum as the venue to attract a new NFL team to the nation's #2 market. LA has been without any pro football team since the early 1990s, when the Rams left for Saint Louis, leaving La-La land in the lurch. However, Hahn's proposal will likely wind up chasing off the NFL rather than attracting them back, regardless of the TV revenues: Mayor James Hahn said he now thinks a modified Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum would be the appropriate home for the possible return of an NFL team to the city. Hahn had previously backed a proposal to build a new stadium, but said the progress the Coliseum has made in preparing environmental impact documents has given it the edge over other possible sites. ... A $400 million renovation to prepare it for a pro team would...
The London Telegraph, normally pro-American and somewhat supportive of the war in Iraq, writes a tough article on the result of the Fallujah truce, where it appears that we will eventually need to face an undiminished insurgency in the heart of the Sunni Triangle: The town is currently a no-go area for US troops, and by extension, any westerner. Despite lucrative rebuilding contracts, none has entered the city since four contractors were killed and their bodies mutilated in March, prompting the American incursion. ... My escort, a member of the Iraqi Islamic Party, which negotiated the peace deal with the marines, warned me that he would not be able to guarantee my safety if I set foot outside the car. The reason for such caution was obvious. Brown-shirted members of the Fallujah Brigade, most of them former resistance fighters, manned checkpoints across the city. The few residents who agreed to...
In a society gone skin-mad, voices of reason seem few and far between. Surprisingly, though, retailers and designers have started to heed calls for more modest choices in clothing aimed at young girls -- from the target market itself: During a recent shopping trip to Nordstrom, 11-year-old Ella Gunderson became frustrated with all the low-cut hip-huggers and skintight tops. So she wrote to the Seattle-based chain's executives to complain. The industry has been getting the message: A more modest look is in, fashion experts say. ... The Web sites ModestApparelUSA.com and ModestByDesign.com — where the slogan is "Clothing your father would be proud of" — report that sales have skyrocketed over the past 18 months. Many youngsters are frustrated by the profusion of racy teenage clothing, according to Buzz Marketing, a New Jersey-based firm that compiles feedback from teen advisers. "There is just sensory overload. Kids are going to say...
June 3, 2004
Brig. Gen. Janis Karpinski, the commanding officer of the Abu Ghraib unit where American soldiers abused Iraqi prisoners, has decided that the best defense is a good offense and actively courts the media to respond to their allegations and questions. Today's Los Angeles Times has a profile of Karpinski in which the general takes the decidedly un-military position of refusing responsibility for the actions of her unit: The woman who commanded the Army Reserve's 800th Military Police Brigade and supervised the guards at Iraq's infamous Abu Ghraib prison has become one of the most recognizable and relentlessly pursued players in an erupting international scandal over prisoner abuse. In part, that's because Karpinski has not followed the route of the traditional commander who stoically accepts responsibility for failure on her watch and quietly retires. Instead, Karpinski has actively cooperated and sometimes sought out the media in a one-woman campaign to defend...
When I lived in California, the Democrat-controlled Legislature could never produce a budget on time. The situation got so bad that Californians debated referenda cutting off salaries and per-diem payments to the state Assembly and Senate from the start of the new fiscal year (July 1) until a bugget was passed and signed into law. Their continuing failure to pass budgets brought the state Democratic party much-deserved scorn, inasmuch as they controlled both houses of the Legislature. Now, however, the shoe resides firmly on the other foot at the federal level, and Republicans not only don't think they can pass a budget on time, they're debating on whether to pass one at all: They have tried sweet-talk and dire warnings, insults and bluffing tactics. None of it has worked, which is why a growing number of Republicans are beginning to despair about agreeing on a budget plan for next year....
CIA Director George Tenet resigned today, according to President George Bush and reported by USA Today (via Instapundit): George Tenet has resigned as CIA director, President Bush announced Thursday, ending the increasingly stormy tenure of a man under fire for the department's intelligence before the Iraq war. In a brief appearance before leaving for Europe, Bush told reporters he had met Wednesday night at the White House with Tenet. "He told he me was resigning for personal reasons. I told him I was sorry he was leaving," Bush said. Tenet will serve until mid-July and will be temporarily replaced by Deputy Director John McLaughlin, Bush said. Glenn Reynolds says, "It's about time," and it's difficult to argue with that assessment. Whatever the reasons, our intelligence services failed to gather a comprehensive look at the gathering threat of Islamofascism. It would be terribly unfair to lay the blame entirely at Tenet's...
The Coalition garnered a qualified endorsement from Ayatollah Ali Sistani today, the most influential Shi'ite cleric in Iraq, for the new transitional government. Sistani issued a rare written statement indicating his modest, if unenthusiastic, approval: Iraq's new interim government Thursday won crucial recognition Thursday from Iraq's most revered cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, the Iraqi Shiites' supreme religious leader. Sistani, in a written statement issued by his office in the holy city of Najaf, shied away from a formal endorsement of the new government. But he said it could make itself worthy by improving life for Iraqis and by erasing "the consequences" of the U.S. occupation. ... Sistani's rare comments were considered highly significant. He holds considerable sway among Iraq's majority Shiite population, so much so that he was able to force the United States to significantly modify its timetable for Iraqi self-government earlier this year. While his words were...
The London Guardian reports today on a demand from British telecommunications giant BT for law enforcement to notify ISPs of convictions for sex offenders so that they can be denied internet services: The courts should bar everyone convicted of sexual offences against children which involve the internet from using the technology, said Nick Truman, head of security at the online arm of British Telecom, BT Openworld. Mr Truman, a member of the Home Office internet taskforce for child protection, also called on the police to inform ISPs of convictions so that the offender's internet account could be cancelled. ... The police do have powers to pass on information about registered sex offenders to third parties, such as the head teacher of a local school, but this does not cover commercial organisations such as ISPs. It sounds like a great idea, and it wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing to try,...
The presidential campaign of John Kerry, who earlier this week got flack from the Swift Boat Veterans for the Truth over the use of members' images in Kerry commercials, ran into a similar issue today when a Texas newspaper accused the campaign of stealing copyrighted photographs and demanded an apology: Corpus Christi Caller-Times is asking Democrat John Kerry to apologize for what it says was the unauthorized use in a Kerry campaign commercial of photos copyrighted by the newspaper. Editor Libby Averyt said Thursday that the ad, which is not running in Texas, appeared to use photos from "South Texas Heroes," a book on veterans published by the newspaper. "No request was made to the Caller-Times for any of the photos," Averyt said. ... The newspaper's attorney, Jorge C. Rangel, on Thursday asked Kerry in a letter to stop using the ads and to apologize to the soldiers' families as...
June 4, 2004
The London Telegraph reports on Republican efforts to increase their support in the African-American community, and notes that Ed Gillespie has won an endorsement from a well-known celebrity. He's a man who has been in the public eye for decades, known for his glib manner of speaking and his hairstyle. Oh, yeah, he's been convicted of manslaughter and indicted for fraud, too: This week found Mr Gillespie, a former lobbyist, on the stage of a Philadelphia jazz club, addressing the city's black business elite. He was flanked on one side by last year's Miss America, Erika Harold, statuesque in a brocade suit. On the other stood the boxing promoter, Don King, his trademark silver quiff combed a good six inches above his head. Mr King held an American flag in one hand, and wore a Stars and Stripes tie round his neck, set off by a large crown-shaped pendant, set...
Bill at INDC Journal posted about the tragic death of Captain Daniel Eggers this past weekend in Afghanistan. Captain Eggers served in Afghanistan with the Green Berets and died when his HUMVEE ran over a mine. Bill relates Eggers' personal history, interspersed with an NBC report of his death -- because Dan Eggers was a school friend of Bill's: His uncompromising character pushed him to speak critically of the school he loved in 1997, recalled Craig Belsole, Eggers' best friend at The Citadel. Eggers was a senior in 1997, during the first school year women were admitted after The Citadel dropped its all-male admissions policy. Eggers and Belsole appeared on "60 Minutes" that year and suggested top school officials covered up incidents of hazing against two female cadets. Eggers and Belsole said they reported their concerns to an officer at the school but were told to keep quiet or lose...
As D-Day approaches, news media have focused on the macro and micro stories surrounding what remains the largest single military maneuver in history and its impact on geopolitics and the people involved. Most of these stories report on the tremendous losses of the liberating Allies or the pain and degradation of those who lived under the brutal Nazi occupation. The AP, however, feels it necessary to smear the memory of those who served in France's liberation by reporting at length on an upcoming book -- one that hasn't even been released at this time -- that paints American GIs as rapists and worse after most of them have died and can no longer defend themselves. Call it the Abu Ghraib-ing of the Greatest Generation: President Bush and other leaders gathering on the beaches of Normandy this weekend will celebrate the heroism and ingenuity of June 6, 1944. But some scholars...
If you had problems accessing the site this morning, you weren't the only ones -- it looks like all of Hosting Matters' sites went down for about a half-hour or so. No word yet on the cause. Unfortunately, I'm out of time for blogging the rest of the morning, so I will catch up at lunchtime if I get the chance....
After much hew and cry regarding the so-called "jobless recovery" -- as if job growth had ever been anything but a lagging indicator in the past -- the economy has created almost a million jobs in the past three months, as 248,000 were added last month and the April estimate was revised sharply upward: The Labor Department report showed 248,000 new jobs in May, compared with the revised 346,000 increase reported in April. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com forecast the May report would show a 225,000-job gain. The April job gain was revised up from a previous reading of 288,000 new jobs. The March jobs gain was also revised higher to 353,000 from a previous reading of 337,000 additional jobs. That puts the three-month job increase at 947,000, the best gain since 1.03 million jobs were added during the same three months of 2000. The job increase was broad-based, with only...
Captain's Quarters reader Roger Crossland pointed me to an article in today's Arab News by Suraya al-Shehry, a Saudi woman, who argues for intellectual curiosity and openness to individual interpretations of Islam. Because of the decentralized nature of Islam, al-Shehry's essay doesn't equate to Martin Luther's theses nailed to the church door, but it does infer that the Saudi government may be rethinking radical Wahhabi philosophy in light of its targeting by radical Islamists. Regarding the closed-mindedness of current Islamic scholarship, al-Shehry protests: The Qur’an, in fact, censures those who merely unthinkingly follow others. “And they would say: ‘Our Lord! We obeyed our chiefs and our great ones, and they misled us as to the (right) Path.’” Reflection in Islam is an essential requirement. Without it the very basis of Islamic thought will begin to crumble. It is that painful reality that is behind our backwardness. The Prophet (peace be...
Far from being hostile to the US or its security, the new Iraqi Prime Minister, Iyad Allawi, has gone on national television to both praise the work of Americans and their allies in Iraq and call for an end to attacks on them: Iraq's new interim leader has praised the US-led coalition, saying it will guarantee security after the country regains its sovereignty on 30 June. In his first televised address to the nation, Iyad Allawi also urged an end to attacks on coalition forces who, he said, were making sacrifices for Iraq. Anti-coalition militants brought Iraqis "nothing but evil", he said. The speech follows an announcement by Iraq's new government endorsing a UN draft on the transfer of power. It's great to see the new interim Iraqi government take the time to both praise and defend the American forces trying so hard to give them their first real chance...
Captain's Quarters will probably see light blogging this evening, as we are babysitting the Little Admiral tonight. She's getting pretty good at make-believe stuff; she pulls me down to the floor and makes me pretend I'm going night-night, covering me with a blanket and giving me a doll for company. Then she slaps me on the head and laaaaaughs. In the meantime, I'll move the Caption Contest to the top and see how many great entries we can get. We had 107 in the last contest overall, and I think we're over 50 already today, including our first-ever Photoshopped entry. Whiskey may return from vacation tonight, but in the meantime check through today's other posts. I'll be reading The Connection by Stephen Hayes in anticipation of our Northern Alliance radio show tomorrow, when we'll interview Mr. Hayes on the connections between Al-Qaeda and Saddam Hussein. Think that they don't exist?...
Earlier today, John Kerry told an audience in Minneapolis that he could carry the military vote in November, despite conventional wisdom: "You'd be amazed at the number of active duty personnel who are coming up at events around the country, greeting me in ropelines or coming to rallies and telling me how important it is for us to stand up and fight for those who are not able to speak out for themselves right now for obvious reasons," Kerry said. The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee added: "But the numbers of active duty people quietly coming and saying we need a change, we need to build a modern military, we need to do the things necessary to protect our troops, we need to have all our allies on the ground in Iraq ... that's what this race is about." I'm not qualified to comment on this (like that's ever stopped me)...
June 5, 2004
The two major political parties have reached an agreement on opening a special legislative bacchanalia session to complete the work they left on the table when time ran out, or when the booze ran out, whichever came first. Governor Tim Pawlenty, Senate Majority Leader Dean Johnson, and House Speaker Steve Sviggum met over some barbecuing brats at the Governor's mansion to reach an agreement on the agenda: After a two-hour meeting featuring gubernatorially grilled brats and beans on the patio of the governor's residence on Friday, Senate Majority Leader Dean Johnson, DFL-Willmar, said he will report by noon Tuesday on whether he can agree to some broad framework that would set the stage for a one- or two-day legislative session, possibly before the end of June. The Legislature adjourned May 16, leaving unfinished its work on a major bonding bill for state borrowing and budget adjustments that would balance the...
The FBI and the Department of Justice have closed the case of alleged police brutality brought by Stephen Porter, a drug dealer and sometime informant of the Minneapolis PD: Two Minneapolis police officers named in an explosive allegation that a man was sexually assaulted with a toilet plunger handle during a drug raid won't face federal criminal charges, Chief Bill McManus announced Friday. Stephen Porter said that he was assaulted in a north Minneapolis apartment nearly eight months ago. McManus said the U.S. Justice Department investigation found no evidence of a "prosecutable violation" of federal criminal civil rights laws by officers Jeff Jindra and Todd Babekuhl. When this case hit the media, it was front-page news, especially since it echoed the notorious Abner Louima case in New York. However, the Stephen Porter case seemed wrong from the start. First off, the alleged abuse took place not in a police station...
Only minutes after our radio show ended, I found out that President Ronald Reagan had passed away after a long struggle with Alzheimer's disease. While not unexpected, the news of his passing stunned me in a way I had not thought possible. For me and millions of other conservatives, Ronald Reagan was our touchstone, even after his debilitating disease struck, and I found myself thinking about all of the ways in which Reagan influenced and molded my own philosophy. Although Reagan had been the governor of California for two terms, I was too young to remember much about him in that role. I first recall his political impact in 1976, when I was 13, as he ran against the incumbent President, Gerald Ford, in an election Jimmy Carter eventually won. He challenged Ford that year as a representative of the so-called Goldwater wing of the GOP, preaching a strong defense,...
Every generation has one or two seminal events that sear into our memories, so much that we can always recall exactly where we were and what we were doing at the moment we heard or saw it. Ronald Reagan's death reminds me of the assassination attempt on March 30, 1981, that almost killed him just as he started his term in office. A 17-year-old college student at the time, I worked as a clerk for the local Sears store in the Los Cerritos Mall, and decided to come in to work on my day off to work as a floater. Normally I worked in the men's clothing department, but instead the office assigned me to the toy department, a choice assignment for a weekday, since the kids would all be in school and I could spend most of my time watching the televisions in the adjacent department. When I first...