Crackin' skulls in the here-after

'Breakfast Club' Principal Gleason Dies

Dear Google: This is how you recognize Memorial Day

Lots of people have noticed Google's lack of recognition of today in their logo. Here's what Google's response to the same controversy last year:

We have to balance this rotating calendar with the need to maintain the consistency of the Google homepage.

Furthermore, Google’s special logos tend to be lighthearted in nature. If we were to commemorate Memorial Day, we would want to express reverence, rather than mirth. This would be a particularly challenging design. We would not want to, in any way, create a graphic that could be interpreted as disrespectful. In light of the mail we have received about this, we are actively considering designs we could display on this day next year. We welcome any suggestions you may have.

"A particularly challenging design?" Ask.com didn't have any problem. Here's a screenshot (click to enlarge):

Simple and reverent. Google could've done the same or something similar. Even an American flag would've done.

More grads defy Anti-Christian Litigation Unit by practicing their constitutional rights

Munford grads go in prayer

In the past, Munford High School graduations started with a student saying a prayer and ended with another student-led prayer.

But at Monday night's commencement ceremony at Dr. Sid Witherington Stadium, due to intervention by the Tennessee chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, the tradition was broken. A new twist was added with a group of prayer supporters picketing and a not-so-quiet moment of silence.

Munford principal Darry Marshall asked the 1,500-plus audience for that moment of silence so everyone could "reflect on what makes this day so special."

Most of the audience stood, bowing their heads. Then, most of the 286 graduating seniors pulled out laminated bookmarks and folded up pieces of paper that they had been given earlier and began reciting "The Lord's Prayer." Students said beforehand that they knew that the moment of silence would be their chance to speak.

Once those in the audience realized what the students were doing, they broke into wild cheering as the silence in the football stadium was broken by the verses of the prayer.

"Please be seated," Marshall told the crowd. "We appreciate the community's support."

"I think it's awesome. They should have the right to do that. I can't see how that can offend anybody," said Tom Page, whose son was performing in the high school band.

The "moment of silence" resulted after several Munford High students wrote the Tennessee ACLU in Nashville earlier this month, questioning whether their high school was adhering to the U.S. Constitution by what they felt was school-sponsored prayer.

Way to go, grads!

The world is cooling. No, wait! It's warming. Hold on! It's cooling! Er, sorry. We mean it's warming.

People who don't study the past are doomed to repeat it. Here's an excellent example:

Time, Sept. 10, 1923: "The discoveries of changes in the sun's heat and the southward advance of glaciers in recent years have given rise to conjecture of the possible advent of a new ice age."

NYT, Sept. 18, 1924: "MacMillan Reports Signs of New Ice Age."

NYT, March 27, 1933: "America in Longest Warm Spell Since 1776; Temperature Line Records a 25-Year Rise."

Time, Jan. 2, 1939: "Gaffers who claim that winters were harder when they were boys are quite right ... weather men have no doubt that the world at least for the time being is growing warmer."

Time, June 24, 1974: "Climatological Cassandras are becoming increasingly apprehensive, for the weather aberrations they are studying may be the harbinger of another ice age."

NYT, May 21, 1975: "Scientists Ponder Why World's Climate is Changing; A Major Cooling Widely Considered to Be Inevitable."

Time, April 9, 2001: "(S)cientists no longer doubt that global warming is happening, and almost nobody questions the fact that humans are at least partly responsible."

NYT, Dec. 27, 2005: "Past Hot Times Hold Few Reasons to Relax About New Warming."

Those who defend the current "global warming" garbage dismiss these past accounts as "wrong" because "we have better understanding, methods, equipment and data now." That equipment must include a time machine since they absolutely know they're right this time and things won't change in the future.

CHT's dad has passed away

Fellow MOB member S. Scott Johnson of Cold Hearted Truth has lost his dad:

A break in the action...

Filed under: News & Notes — C.H. Truth @ 08:02:05 am

I just found out this morning that my dad lost his battle with terminal cancer. I will be out for at least a few days while taking care of things..

Please send him and his family your condolences and your prayers (if you're so inclined).

Seven years ago today

A wife of noble character who can find?
She is worth far more than rubies.

Her husband has full confidence in her
and lacks nothing of value.

She brings him good, not harm,
all the days of her life.

She selects wool and flax
and works with eager hands.

She sets about her work vigorously;
her arms are strong for her tasks.

She opens her arms to the poor
and extends her hands to the needy.

She is clothed with strength and dignity;
she can laugh at the days to come.

She speaks with wisdom,
and faithful instruction is on her tongue.

She watches over the affairs of her household
and does not eat the bread of idleness.

Her children arise and call her blessed;
her husband also, and he praises her:

"Many women do noble things,
but you surpass them all."

Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting;
but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.



Happy anniversary, sweetie!
Thank you for being my wife of noble character!
I love you!

Christian grads practicing "civil disobedience"

This story will make the rabid secularists' teeth grind:

Despite ruling, prayer recited at graduation

A federal judge blocked a southern Kentucky high school yesterday from including prayers in its graduation ceremony, prompting students to begin reciting the Lord's Prayer during the opening remarks.

About 200 students interrupted the principal's comments with the prayer, drawing thunderous applause and a standing ovation from the crowd.

Earlier in the day, a judge banned prayers from the ceremony in response to a lawsuit filed this week by the American Civil Liberties Union. The lawsuit sought a restraining order on behalf of an unidentified student at Russell County High School in Russell Springs, 90 miles south of Louisville.

Later in the ceremony, senior Megan Chapman told the crowd that God had guided her since childhood. She was interrupted repeatedly by cheering as she urged her classmates to trust in God as they go through life.

Superintendent Scott Pierce said he was pleased with the students' response to the ruling.

The U.S. Supreme Court has held that clergy-led prayer in public school graduations and sporting events is prohibited.

Good for them!

Oh, and the student behind the lawsuit actually ISN'T "unidentified":

A federal judge in Louisville, Kentucky, granted a temporary restraining order prohibiting a prayer from being said during graduation ceremonies at an area high school after a Muslim student on the planning committee objected and garnered the help of the American Civil Liberties Union.

Arshiya Saiyed, a senior at Shelby County High School, said she was working on plans for the ceremony, scheduled for last night, with the senior panel when the issue came up, according to WHAS-TV in Louisville.

"Terms like Jesus Christ, heavenly father, I talked about the fact I was Muslim and the prayers in the past were offensive to me," the 17-year-old said.

A Muslim. No kidding... So why do you suppose the media would want to lie (via omission) about that fact? Perhaps they're worried that this student will end up like Salman Rushdie and have President Bush putting a multi-million dollar bounty on her head. (Only in the secularists' dreams would that happen, of course.)

And just in case any of you lurking liberals thinks this is a case of WorldNetDaily tracking down her name in some VRWC plot to attack her somehow:

Student questions constitutionality of prayer

06:09 PM EDT on Thursday, May 18, 2006

Arshiya Saiyed is one of those girls that seems to get everything done in a day: school, volunteering, extra curriculars.

[Use username "[email protected]" and password "johnny" to log in to that article. Other usernames and passwords for that and other sites available at BugMeNot.]

The WND article was posted the next day.

UPDATE: I - unlike the people behind and supporting the false Rove indictment story - can admit when I'm wrong. As Stop the ACLU's Jay points out, these are actually two similar cases from different schools. Odd that they're both in Kentucky, though, isn't it?

Joke overload!

Mounties get their men -- each other

On a Friday night in Yarmouth this June, Const. Jason Tree and Const. David Connors will don their scarlet dress uniforms, stand before family, friends and co-workers and wed in the first same-sex marriage in the RCMP’s storied history.

Gives a whole new meaning to "mounted police," doesn't it?

I'm sorry! I'm sorry!

Screamin' Dean's lying again. His lips are moving.

Found via the Conservative Underground:

National Gay and Lesbian Task Force denounces DNC Chair Howard Dean's misrepresentation of party platform

In a Christian Broadcasting News segment aired today on The 700 Club concerning how Democrats are reaching out to evangelicals, Howard Dean, chair of the Democratic National Party, said, "The Democratic Party platform from 2004 says that marriage is between a man and a woman. That's what it says. I think where we may take exception with some religious leaders is that we believe in inclusion, that everybody deserves to live with dignity and respect, and that equal rights under the law are important."

In fact, the DNC 2004 platform says, "We support full inclusion of gay and lesbian families in the life of our nation and seek equal responsibilities, benefits, and protections for these families. In our country, marriage has been defined at the state level for 200 years, and we believe it should continue to be defined there. We repudiate President Bush's divisive effort to politicize the Constitution by pursuing a 'Federal Marriage Amendment.' Our goal is to bring Americans together, not drive them apart."

Man, the guy can't even tell the truth about his own party!

UPDATE: News site 365Gay (which I really don't care to link to) has this to say about Dean:

Not only has the "misspeak" forced Dean to acknowledge it has hurt the party with gays, he now has to face conservative Christians who have begun portraying his original remarks to be a callous attempt to get their votes by misleading them.

Even they can see the truth.

The ABA succumbs to BDS

The Bush Derangement Syndrome affects groups now, it seems. Via Power Line and Wizbang:

It's official: the American Bar Association is off the reservation. After several years of relatively good behavior, it has now drawn its knives and enlisted in the Democrats' 2006 campaign. Today, the ABA's judicial qualifications panel opined unanimously that Michael Wallace, nominated to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, is "unqualified" for the post.

This is ridiculous. Wallace's bio is here. He graduated from Harvard and (at the top of his class) the University of Virginia Law School. He clerked for the Mississippi Supreme Court, and for Justice Rehnquist on the U.S. Supreme Court. President Reagan appointed Wallace to head the Legal Services Corporation. For some years, Wallace has had what appears to be a top-notch litigation practice, with an appellate focus, in Jackson, Mississippi.

Based on Wallace's resume, there are two reasons why the Democrats at the ABA consider him "unqualified." The first is that he is a Republican. He is General Counsel of the Mississippi Republican Party, and--no doubt a key fact--he served as Special Impeachment Counsel to then-Majority Leader Trent Lott for the impeachment trial of President Clinton. The second reason is that Wallace is from Mississippi. I doubt whether the ABA would dare to pull the same stunt with a Northerner.

With this nakedly political move, the American Bar Association has once again forfeited any claim to credibility.

Trying to hurt President Bush is nothing new to the ABA. Remember this?

ABA adds 1 and 1 and gets 5

The ABA obviously is grossly biased and will do anything and everything they can to hinder or hurt the Bush Administration, even if it makes absolutely no sense.

I should've known...

Remember this?

CBS thinks the country is 37% Democrat but only 28% Republican

Guess what happened again:

The Latest AP/Ipsos "Bush And The GOP Suck" Poll

First, only 82% of respondents were even eligible to vote, and there's no indication of how many of them actually went to the polls in 2004.

1. Party Leanings - The poll is slanted 50-41% towards Democrats, even though the voters in the 2004 election were split evenly at 37% between Republicans and Democrats.

2. Religion - Next, a whopping 19% of respondents had "no" religion, while in 2004 only 10% of voters had "no" religion, and they voted overwhelmingly for Kerry (+36%).

3. Age of Respondents In this poll 31% of the respondents were between 18-34, even though the 18-29 year olds (a slightly smaller demo) only made up 17% of the electorate in the 2004 election. I think it's pretty safe to say that by including 30-34 year olds that number would still not have come close to the IPSOS sample.

4. Income Level of Respondents - This one is amazing. In this poll 17% of respondents made under $20,000 per year. In 2004, only 8% of voters were in this income bracket, and voted 63-36% for Kerry.

5. Geography - In this poll, only 19% of respondents were from "rural" areas. In 2004, 25% of voters were from rural areas, and voted 57-42% for Bush.

6. Race - In this poll, there were 69% white respondents and 13% Hispanic respondents. In 2004, 77% of voters were white, and only 8% Hispanic. Bush won the white vote 58-41% and Kerry the Hispanic vote 53-44%.

And:

NYT/CBS Poll: Bush and GOP At Lowest Ever (Another Crap Poll)

First, 24%% of respondents didn't even bother to vote in 2004. So right away, nearly 1/4 of the respondents didn't bother to vote in a Presidential election year, so you can pretty much exclude them from consideration. And given that mid-term elections have even lighter turnout, one can only imagine how many of these respondents will even vote.

1. Party Leanings - The poll is SLANTED HEAVILY towards Democrats. Even though the voters in the 2004 election were split evenly at 37% between Republicans and Democrats, this poll is 37%(D), 34%(I) and 25%(R). What the hell did the NYT and CBS expect when THE GAP BETWEEN REPUBLICANS AND DEMOCRATS IS 12%?

2. 2004 Vote - In 2004, President Bush won by just over 3%. In this poll, of those who did vote in 2004, they voted for John Kerry by +2%.

3. Weekend Poll - Three of the four polling nights were weekend nights. Even the the poll director of the Washington Post has indicated these nights do not favor Republicans.

4. Religion - Next, 15% of respondents had "no" religion, while in 2004 only 10% of voters had "no" religion, and they voted overwhelmingly for Kerry (+36%). Additionally, Catholic voters made up 27% of the electorate in 2004, and voted for Bush by +5%, but in this poll, they are only 22% of the sample.

5. Age of Respondents In this poll 22% of the respondents were between 18-29, even though that group only made up 17% of the electorate in the 2004 election.

6. Marital Status - In this poll, only 57% of respondents are married. In 2004, 63% of voters were married, and voted 57-42% for Bush.

7. Income Level - In this poll, some 29% of respondents are have incomes under $30,000.00. In 2004, only 23% of voters were married, and voted 60-39% for Kerry. Gee, who do you think is going to most angry about gas prices?

And if you like your commentary a little more sarcastic, read this one:

America's Drastic Demographic Changes: November 2004 & May 2006

Bush at 31, but Kerry and Gore are even worse

President Bush's approval rating may be tanking (and with good reason), but look at these numbers for his opponents from the presidental elections:

The political situation has not helped some of the more prominent members of the Democratic Party. Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts, who was Mr. Bush's opponent in 2004, had a lower approval rating than Mr. Bush: 26 percent, down from 40 percent in a poll conducted right after the election.

And just 28 percent said they had a favorable view of Al Gore, one of Mr. Bush's more vocal critics.

This is even with Democrats currently being viewed more favorably than Republicans, too.

And since this is the New York Times, these numbers are buried at the bottom of the piece, of course.

UPDATE: Hello to RealClearPolitics readers! Please feel free to take a look around. (And no, I don't know why RCP's link says just "Blog." Maybe something to do with the ampersand.)

Hovind needs to render unto Caesar what is Caesar's

Got this via PZ Myers, believe it or not, and I actually agree with it!

Park could face extinction

It may have been built with heavenly intentions, but a judge has ruled that the creationism theme park known as Dinosaur Adventure Land still must obey earthly laws.

Escambia County authorities this week locked up a museum building at the theme park on North Palafox Street in Pensacola after Circuit Judge Michael Allen ruled the owners were in contempt of court.

...

County commissioners showed no sympathy to members of the Creation Science Evangelism ministry who spoke out Thursday night at a commission meeting about the county's actions.

"Scripture also says 'Render unto Caesar what Caesar demands.' And right now, Caesar demands a building permit," County Commission Chairman Mike Whitehead said.

A building permit and inspection by county authorities is vital to ensuring the theme park is safe for the thousands of people who reportedly visit the park and museum every year, Whitehead said.

Church leader Kent Hovind vowed to appeal the case.

"We will continue our legal fight," Hovind said Thursday.

"This is pure religious persecution," said Glen Stoll, who works closely with Hovind on legal issues.

*sigh* You're not helping, guys. The judge is absolutely correct. Even if you were building an actual church (or temple, mosque, etc.), you STILL need to obtain a building permit! That is the law of the land and as Christians, we are commissioned by God to obey those laws as long as they don't supercede God's commands.

And this is not a case of religious persecution by any stretch of the imagination. Hiding behind that excuse when there is no persecution is ridiculously foolish and only hurts people who actually do become victims of true religious persecution.

Belgian churches being turned into mosques

There's no way that this would be tolerated (or under-reported) if it were Christians turning mosques into churches or Jews turning them into temples.

Allah Takes Over Church

The Belgian Bishops have opened their churches to illegal immigrants in order to pressurize the Belgian authorities to allow the immigrants to stay in the country.

Most of the immigrant squatters in the churches are Muslims. They display banners in the church showing the name of Allah (picture taken in the church of Our Lady of Perpetual Succour, Brussels).

The Belgian Bishops are so ignorant that they do not see what is going on: their churches are being turned into mosques before their very eyes.

The Muslim squatters hold Islamic prayer services in the church. The altar has been moved and the statue of Our Lady covered by a cloth to hide her from the eyes of the Muslim believers.

PZ touting that "Christians hate sex" lie

[Note: Sorry for the crudeness in this post, but it is unavoidable since this is the way PZ Myers and his fellow nincompoops write.]

U of Minnesota professor PZ Myers tries to be pithy by "summing up" this rather idiotic rant with his own stupidity:

Wisdom
Biologists love boobies, beavers, and the weenus!

Ignorance
Creationists fear boobies, beavers, and the weenus.

Cute. But I do have to agree - that second statement really is made out of ignorance. Not only that, but it is demonstrably false. Doubt it? Try this:

I can say with with certainty that most Creationists are Republicans. I am sure PZ and company will agree with me. Now, as Republicans, Creationists must be represented in this poll result from ABC News' Primetime Live (note that it's not Fox News, so PZ and his merry band of conservative-haters can't ignore it out of hand):

Of those involved in a committed relationship, who is very satisfied with their relationship?
Republicans — 87 percent; Democrats — 76 percent

Who is very satisfied with their sex life?
Republicans — 56 percent; Democrats — 47 percent

The poll analysis also reveals who has worn something sexy to enhance their sex life:
Republicans — 72 percent; Democrats — 62 percent

When asked whether they had ever faked an orgasm, more Democrats (33 percent) than Republicans (26 percent) said they had.

So how, pray tell, can Creationists have satisfying sex lives that involves sexy lingerie (or whatever) if they, as PZ and others claim, fear the body parts associated with sex? (I'm anticipating a lame response about Creationists being the other 13, 44 and 28 percent in those poll questions.)

[PZ seems to be afraid of my opinion. He's deleting my trackbacks to his post.]

The REAL work of pro-life sidewalk counselors

I love this:

Mission to Abortion Center Workers

As soon as the girl got out of the truck she started yelling, "you had better... police....arrest!"

I couldn't quite make out what she was saying, but I gathered it wasn't good. "I'm sorry, sister, I can't quite hear you."

She came closer. She was an abortion center worker. The first one to arrive, in fact, for the day. She would open the killing center. She said, "you had better not block the driveway, like those people were doing yesterday, or I'm going to call the police! I will have you arrested!"

I answered, "Sister, I promise you, not only will I not block the driveway, but I will personally guarantee that no one else will block the driveway today."

She seemed a little confused. She continued, "Well, you just need to know... everytime you people make trouble, I get yelled at."

I replied, "I'm sorry to hear that . . . honestly. My name is Michael. What's your name?"

She introduced herself and seemed still more confused and rather caught off-guard. I went on to let her know that we were there at the abortion center to help her as well - we would even help her to find a job if she was interested in changing her life.

"You do that?" She seemed genuinely surprised and pleased. The transformation was amazing - one moment she was threatening me with arrest, the next she was inquiring about a new job.

"Yes, of course," I said, "One of my best friends used to work for Planned Parenthood. She actually assisted in abortions - before she became a Christian, that is. Are you a Christian?"

She nodded in the affirmative.

"Then you know you're not supposed to have any part in this business, don't you?"

Once again she nodded. I continued, "Tell you what, bring me your resume, and I will do everything I can to help you find a way out of this place. What are your salary requirements?"

She replied quickly, "$15 an hour."

"I will do my best," I said. But then I added, "Just remember, you may have to do something really scary - to step out in faith and trust God."

She nodded again in the affirmative, unaware that by the end of that day I had talked to three other abortion center workers, all claiming to be Christians, and all asking for help to find a new job. These are my sisters and they need to be rescued as much as, perhaps more, than the babies they help to kill. Will you pray for them?

National Day of Prayer, 2006

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2006/05/20060503-14.html

Throughout our Nation's history, our citizens have prayed and come together before God to offer Him gratitude, reflect on His will, seek His aid, and respond to His grace. On this National Day of Prayer, we thank God for His many blessings and His care of our country.

God has greatly blessed the American people, and in 1789, George Washington proclaimed: "It is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the Providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and to humbly implore His protection and favor." Americans remain a prayerful and thankful people. We pray for the safety of our troops as they carry out dangerous missions with courage and compassion, and we remember the strength and sacrifice of their families. We pray for the good people of the Gulf Coast region as they work to rebuild their communities after the devastating hurricanes of 2005, and we thank God for the volunteers who have opened their hearts to help their neighbors in a time of need. We pray for the protection of innocent lives and for the expansion of peace and liberty throughout the world.

Through prayer, our faith is strengthened, our hearts are humbled, and our lives are transformed. May our Nation always have the humility to trust in the goodness of God's plans.

The Congress, by Public Law 100-307, as amended, has called on our Nation to reaffirm the role of prayer in our culture and to respect the freedom of religion by recognizing each year a "National Day of Prayer."

NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim May 4, 2006, as a National Day of Prayer. I ask the citizens of our Nation to give thanks, each according to his or her own faith, for the freedoms and blessings we have received and for God's continued guidance and protection. I urge all Americans to join in observing this day with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this third day of May, in the year of our Lord two thousand six, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirtieth.

GEORGE W. BUSH

#2 for a #2 joke

I took second place in Wizbang's latest Weekend Caption Contest. (If you don't get the reference, Jenny McCarthy did an ad for Candie's shoes in which she was photographed sitting on the toilet.)

May 1st, 2006 - people protesting for their right to break America's laws

Michelle's covering a lot of coverage of today's idiotic protests. Could someone on the left please explain this to me? Why should these people be rewarded for breaking the law? Why should they get a pass when others from other countries will have to continue getting into America the legal way? If we're going to hand these people "amnesty," then why bother with immigration laws and border protection at all? It simply would not be fair to the millions who've entered and will enter this country legally.

And FYI for Shannon, CC and various other liberals who think I'm racist, I don't hate Latinos. (I don't hate anyone.) What I hate is when laws are broken. What I hate even more than that is when people advocate turning a blind eye to the lawbreaking. These illegal immigrants could be from where my ancestors are from - Scandinavia - and my attitude would still be the same. Illegal immigration is illegal. I'm simply at a loss as to why people don't get that.