THE INDICTMENT!  WOW!  WHAT INCREDIBLE EXCITEMENT!

What crime has been charged?  Scooter Libby, Vice President Cheney's Chief of Staff, has been charged with one count of obstruction of justice, two counts of perjury and two counts of making false statements. [read the indictment | press release pdf] What did he do?  Well, as best as I can figure it out it happened this way.  New York Times reporter Matthew Cooper asked Libby what he had heard about the status of Valerie Plame.  Libby answered that he had heard other reporters saying that Plame worked for the CIA.  The investigation apparently showed that Libby told Cooper that Plame worked for the CIA without the qualification that he had heard that from other reporters.  There's two of your crimes, the two counts of perjury.  Libby also said that he had talked to NBC's Tim Russert about the affair, when he had not. 

What wasn't Libby charged with?  Disclosing the name of a CIA covert agent, or conspiring to do so.  I don't know who first coined this phrase, but essentially Libby was charged with lying about a crime that was not committed.

In the case of Scooter Libby and Valerie Plame it seems clear that no crime was committed, yet lies may have been told during the investigative process that made that determination.  If so, then indictments are proper, and punishment is warranted.  Remember, though, that it is not enough for a statement to be untrue for it to be categorized as a lie.  The person uttering that statement has to know that the statement was not true at the time the statement was made.  Therefore, George Bush's assertions that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction was not a lie, unless it can be proven that Bush knew at the time he made the statement that it was not true.  (Since such weapons have, in fact, been found ... the question of whether or not Bush lied has been put to rest.)

Now that the media circus is close to being played out, let's review:  

1.) The left and the media are trying to portray this as some sort of confirmation that 'Bush lied' about weapons of mass destruction.  Libby's indictment is nothing of the sort.  In fact, Libby was indicted for the cover-up of a non-crime.  Fitzgerald went out of his way Friday to say Libby wasn't being charged for outing Valerie Plame.  Thus, the entire reason for the initial probe has been dropped.

2.) Liberals are acting like Scooter Libby is the most powerful government official to have ever lived.  The fact of the matter is that most people have no idea who Scooter Libby is.  For all they know, it's Phil Rizzuto's love child from his playing days and not the vice-president's chief of staff.  The story will be off the radar screen by this afternoon, once Bush nominates his new Supreme Court replacement.

3.) This is not the start of some huge scandal.  Fitzgerald had 2 years and millions of dollars to investigate this non-crime, and we have one person being charged.  Case closed.  If it was going to go any higher, it would have already.  Democrats are naturally disappointed.

Oh, and to further enrage your leftist friends....Libby's lying to the grand jury is the same as Bill Clinton's.  The difference is Bill Clinton didn't serve a day in jail, and Scooter Libby most certainly will.

Before we move on, here's something I wanted you to see from today's "Vent" in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

"Let's compare: committing treason for political retribution while leading the country into war under false pretenses, vs. trying to avoid direct answers about an illicit affair with an intern."

If the person who phoned in this "vent" is a registered voter we're all in big trouble. 

GOVERNMENT VS. PRIVATE SECTOR

This past weekend's stop for the NASCAR circuit was the Atlanta Motor Speedway.  Less than four months ago this facility was heavily damaged.  Many structures including trackside condos and luxury suites, were completely destroyed, by a tornado.  After the tornado passed some people expressed doubts as to whether or not the raceway would be ready to host this weekend's NASCAR event.  As it turns out there was no reason to worry.  The cleanup and reconstruction was handled by the private sector, not by government.  No bidding processes burden with the requirements of political correctness.  No campaign contributors and political supporters to satiate.   There were just two things to do:  (1) Figure out what needs to be done.  (2) Do it.

Meanwhile .... in New Orleans ......

THOSE EVIL OIL COMPANIES AND THEIR PROFITS

There has been much wailing and gnashing of teeth in the last week or so over the reports from major oil companies of increased profits.  These reports have given many Americans the opportunity to exhibit their total ignorance when it comes to matters economic.  For this we can thank our wonderful government schools, where basic education in economics is, for all practical purposes, non-existent. 

October survey shows that 72% have an unfavorable opinion of oil companies.  In the Sunday "Vent" in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution several of Atlanta's more poorly educated citizens chimed in with their thoughts on oil companies and their profits:

"When do the oil company profits for the quarter become proof of price gouging?"

"Oil company profits show we have been hosed."

Oil company profits can not in and of themselves be proof of price gouging, neither can they be proof that we've been "hosed."  Once again the "Vent" serves as a platform from which people can demonstrate their ignorance.

Now .. just what have we read about oil company earnings.  Generally, we've read that oil company profits are up.  This, if you read the public opinion polls, is evidence of evil.   How dare the oil companies allow their profits to go up?  Now .. a little test.  Ask someone in your office, school ... whatever ... what the difference is between profits and profit margins.  See if they can come up with an answer.  Simply put, your profits are the money that's left over from gross revenues after you pay the costs of doing business.  Profit margins are the percentage of gross revenues that are left over after you pay those costs.  I would bet you five bucks against a stale donut that 95% of seniors in our illustrious government high schools couldn't tell you the difference between the two ... and it will be those 95% who are screaming bloody murder about oil company profits.

Now ... for those of you who went to government schools, let's expand on the explanation.  Let's say that the total gross revenues for a company for one year equal $1,000,000.  That's a million bucks.  This company spends $930,000 to bring in that million.  The difference between the one million and the $930,000 is $70,000. That's your profit.  Divide the $70,000 by the one million and you get 0.07, or 7%.  That's your profit margin.  Now let's say that the very next year the company sells twice as much product the second year and brings in two million bucks.  Let's also say that the cost of making those products doubles as well .. to $1,860,000.  How much money did you have left over?  Those of you who went to government schools get out your calculators .. the rest of you can figure it out in your head.  You have $140,000 left over.  That's your profit. 

Wait!  Your profits have doubled!  How dare you?  What are you doing, price gouging?  These are excess profits -- windfall profits -- and the government ought to step in immediately and take them away from you, you greedy capitalist pig! 

Hold on ... before we get carried away with our little price gouging rant here, let's grab those calculators again.  Divide the $140,000 in profits by the $2,000,000 in gross receipts and what do we have?  Why, it seems the answer is once again 0.07, or 7%!  The profits have doubled, but the profit margin remains exactly the same! 

The problem here is that, thanks to the hideous education the vast majority of Americans have received at the hands of the government, few people know the difference between a profit and a profit margin.  Whey they read that oil company profits have gone up they have no educational basis upon which to balance the fact that oil company revenues have also gone up ... thanks to the increase in the price of crude oil.  Revenues go up.  Profits go up.  It's not really that hard to understand.

Now, as I've said, that explanation is rather simplistic.  The tragedy is that most Americans don't understand the concept of profits and profit margins even at that basic level.  Someone will now come along and point out that the oil company profit margins have been rising along with the profits themselves.  They're right.  You see, costs don't necessarily double when revenues do.  There are some costs that remain fixed even when the prices for raw materials (crude oil) increase.  This will mean that profit margins will also increase, though not anywhere near as much as profits themselves.  Is this necessarily a bad thing?  Hardly.  Just where do you think the energy companies, including the oil companies, get the money they need to explore for new sources of oil, to build new refineries, and to conduct research on additional or alternate energy sources?  That money comes from profits.  If profits increase due to high demand met by a scarcity of product the oil companies will be in a position to use increased profits to expand production and to search for new sources of oil.  If the government seizes these profits, as suggested by Hillary Clinton, then those dollars would not be available for energy company investments into expanding our energy resources. 

Hillary's brilliant idea of seizing profits does not come as a surprise to many.  After all, Hillary was identified by her college professors as a budding young socialist many years before she achieved fame as Bill's "wife."  Hillary's idea is for the oil companies to hand over about $20 billion a year to the government to be used for "research" and to subsidize consumers.  The subsidies, of course, would become just another government entitlement that Democratic politicians would use to buy votes.  The research?  Well, sad to say there are actually people out there who think that the government can do a better job conducting research to insure our future energy needs than can the private sector.  The impact of state education is widely felt. 

Let's explore Hillary's profit-seizure idea a bit more.  Another source of funds for oil companies to use for exploration and the development of additional energy resources would be the money that comes from investors.  These investors purchase shares of stock in oil companies because they believe that their investments will appreciate in value and, in some cases, will pay dividends.  If the government bows to the paranoia and anti-capitalist ignorance of the state-educated masses and seizes those profits, what then will be the reason to invest in these oil companies? 

Look.  I'm not trying to hammer the government schools here; but the more I think about it the more I'm convinced that so many of the problems that we face today as a nation are the direct or indirect result of the abysmally poor education most Americans get from their state-operated schools.  It's clear that vast numbers of Americans have scant knowledge of the role of prices in the allocation of resources by the marketplace, and the relationship of profits to those prices.  Politicians, like Hillary Clinton, exploit that ignorance to enhance their personal political power at the expense of our economic liberty. 

WHAT HARRY REID WANTS

Now that the White House is perceived to be in disarray, the Democrats think they smell blood.  First out of the gate to start making demands is Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid.  His demands include Karl Rove's resignation, a public apology from George Bush and oh....Bush had better not nominate a conservative Justice for the Supreme Court.  I wonder what Harry Reid will do if he doesn't quite get his way?  Hold his breath until he turns red, white and blue?

So what should the president do?  On this one, he should take a cue from the voters...ignore the left.  The White House is hardly in disarray.  A staffer in the Vice-President's office was indicted on 5 charges and resigned.  No one else was indicted.  Harriet Miers did the right thing and pulled her name from consideration.  Polls?  Who cares...polls are whatever the pollsters want them to be.  The best thing for Bush to do right now is just move forward.

But that isn't stopping the media from reporting Harry Reid's latest demands...as if they matter.  If Republicans want to get anything done in Washington, they need to govern like a majority party.

And Karl Rove has to keep his job in the White House until January 2009, just to irritate the bedwetters.

PLEADING ISLAM'S CASE

Prince Charles and his wife leave Britain tomorrow for an 8-day visit to the United States.  According to a story making the rounds, the Prince has Islam at the top of his agenda.  That's right, Islam.  What about?  Well, apparently he has a burr in his saddle because he thinks Americans have been too intolerant of Muslims since September 11, 2001.  He wants to talk to George W. Bush about it.

What?

The story, which appeared in the British media, probably has to be taken with a grain of salt, but it's worth discussing until it's refuted.  Evidently Charles is upset that the actions of the 9/11 hijackers are tarnishing the image of Muslims around the world.  According to an MP who attended a meeting with Charles, "His criticism of America was a general one of the Americans not having the appreciation we have for Islam and its culture."  Oh really?  Not appreciating Islam like the Brits do?  Well let's take a quick look at their "appreciation," shall we?

It is the lax immigration rules of the UK that are the direct cause of the subway and bus bombings earlier this year.  Islamic clerics, protected by British law, regularly openly recruit terrorists and preach Islamic hate at mosques.  If that's appreciating Islam, I hope we never do.

The Prince actually has it backwards.  The United States has been too tolerant of Islam since 9/11.  The steadfast refusal of the government to profile airline passengers means that we are no more safe since 9/11 than we were before.

It will be quite the media sideshow....his 8-day tour includes New York, Washington and San Francisco.

LOVE THOSE UNIONS

Philadelphia transit workers are on strike this morning.  Hundreds of thousands of commuters and students are affected.  The issue?  Whether or not the union workers have any responsibility for their own health care.  The city wants these union members to pay five percent .. only 5% .. of the cost of their health insurance.  No way, say the unions ... so they go out on strike.  Life in America.  Who is responsible for your health care?  Not you!  It's the government's responsibility, or your employers!  But you bear no responsibility at all!

And the politicians smile.

If you don't know how to put on a helmet, should you be riding a scooter? Sent in by Ray.

JUST A FEW EMAILS

I made a little foray into the show email over the weekend ... here are a few standouts:

From First Lt. Bruce Bishop, a 31 year old fireman, who explains that he plans to re-enlist in the Utah Natiional Guard "because as I look around at the state of this nation and see all of the weak little pampered candy-asses that are whining about this or protesting that, I'd be afraid to leave the fate of this nation entirely up to them."

Hello Neil:  I could have written your dialogue today on society's total dependence from morning till night on the federal gov't.  I, too, deplore the whining, wimping Florida residents who were too lazy to put away provisions.  I am a Florida resident and my husband (age 77) and I (age 63) could live well for a month if we had no elec./water/gasoline/food available to us.  We always put aside gallons of fresh water at the beginning of each hurricane season and have cupboards amply stocked with dry and canned goods (and dog food for our dogs!). A generator would keep one refrigerator and a fan running with gasoline from 5 gallon cans that have been filled well ahead of time.  Self-sufficiency does not exist today!

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REDNECK SCRAP BOOK

Hey, at least it isn't a real deer. Someone remind me to post a pic of the skinned carcasses my next door neighbor hung from the swing set in the back yard one New Year's Eve. (-ww) More in the Redneck Scrap Book.

READING ASSIGNMENTS

Join Neal and his proud beast Coco at The Bobby Cox "Paws Cause" Barbeque and Entertainment Fund Raiser November 5th.

Remember when those Katrina evacuees were sent to Houston, and I said "Houston, you have a problem."?  Here's a story of three Katrina evacuees who killed the woman who tried to help them.

WHAT THE HECK ARE THOSE POINTY HAND THINGS?

These are links to each individual story on the Nuze, p-links for the geeks out there. Plus, they work today and they'll work tomorrow. Now you can easily discuss/debate/rip apart the Nuze without worrying about the links going bad. Enjoy!

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