BUSH'S SPEECH

So the president gave his speech last night, laying out a roadmap to what he believes will be victory in Iraq. Will it work? Who knows...but to the terrorist appeasers on Capitol Hill, it just wasn't good enough. Surrender is the only plan they'll support. Winning isn't in the cards for them and it never was.

There's no doubt about it .. things in Iraq are a mess. It was an understatement when George Bush said last night that mistakes were made. Not enough troops to begin with. Not preserving elements of the Iraqi Army and its leadership. Not taking back Fallujah. Too little shock and awe. It's a war! Do you think wars follow a script or a business plan?

If we listen to Nancy Pelosi and take a walk, the results would be disastrous. The new Iraqi government would immediately collapse and roving bands of thugs would take power. Sunnis and Shiites would start a civil war that would last until the end of time. Iraq would almost certainly become a hotbed of terrorist activity and planning. Other nations in the Middle East would see America tuck its tail and run, and know that they had to make peace with the Islamic fascists because there would be nobody around to help them if they didn't. Our legacy? Three thousand American deaths ... for what?

The Democrats are going to have a couple of demonstration votes ... all for show .. and they're going to beat their chests a bit. But President Bush will send the troops, and the Congress will fund them. I truly believe that there are Democrats who want anything but a victory in Iraq. A victory would make Bush look good. A victory would make Democrat defeatism look bad. Job one for Democrats is most certainly not trying to salvage Iraq. Job one for Democrats most certainly is laying the groundwork for increasing the Democrat majority in in Congress, and electing Hillary in 2008.

So the only thing we can do now is try to win, I suppose. Let's just hope it isn't too late.

Giving a green light to Iraqi and American troops to enter the neighborhoods that have, up until now, been refuges for terrorists should make a difference.

There is this to consider. Almost anywhere in the world where you see violence .. where you see one identifiable group of people trying to kill another .. you will find that they are Muslims. I'm not sure just how many shooting wars or conflicts, large and small, there are around the world. I think that the number is somewhere between 120 and 130. In all but about four you will find Muslims involved. Everywhere you look .. Muslims killing people; and we're supposed to believe that this is a peaceful religion? Muslim organization beat their gums all they want about the wonderful, peaceful nature of the serene religion of Islam .. but just look around on your own a bit and you find all the evidence you need to see that this concept of loving, peaceful Islam is simply not true.

Now there are areas of the Middle East that are both Muslim and relatively peaceful. Turkey stands out, and you also have the United Arab Emirates. The UAE is even a tourist destination for non-Muslims around the world! Is there any reason to believe that this could be the future of Iraq? Well .. if you rely solely on the American media for your image of Iraq, that would seem doubtful. The mainstream American media has made almost no effort at all to bring us images of Iraq outside of the areas of Islamic violence. The Kurdish areas of Iraq, for instance, are almost idyllic compared to Baghdad. I've seen videos of Kurdish families enjoying picnics and festivals along a riverside while their friends water-ski and play with jet skis. I've also seen videos of commercial areas of Baghdad and other Iraqi cities that are flourishing and vibrant.

The problem is, people have to send these videos to me. I just can't seem to find them on any newscast on any mainstream news program. Why not? is there a concern that these images might actually convince the American people that some progress is being made? That there might actually be a chance to tame this country and introduce freedom and economic liberty into the heart of the Middle East?

THE WARNING TO IRAN AND SYRIA

Oh, and did you catch the warning to Iran in the speech last night? Wouldn't that be something if we finally gave Tehran their much-deserved attention-getter? This is a war much larger than Iraq or Afghanistan. It's a war against Islamic fascism. Iran and Syria are right in the middle of all of this. They have enabled and supported the insurgency in Iraq with bodies and arms.

Don't forget that a large amount of the "insurgents" are actually foreign fighters. These are terrorists from neighboring countries. Of course, the media doesn't want you to know that. They like to paint the "gunmen" (the media's second-favorite word for Islamic terrorists after "militants,) as Iraqis only....Iraqis unhappy with the occupation. Not so. This is foreign interference.

Hopefully the White House follows through on the threat. If Iran continues to supply the insurgency...if Syria continues to allow them to cross over their border...how about some air strikes to put them back in line? They've certainly had it coming for quite some time. Of course the Democrats would probably condemn that too.

HOUSE PASSES MINIMUM WAGE INCREASE

The Democrats have fulfilled a pledge and have passed a bill raising the minimum wage over the next 24 months. Every single member of the House who voted for this legislation has now, through their vote, told us that they:

• Believe it is the role of the Imperial Federal Government of the United States to set wages in the private sector.
  
  
• Believe that it is appropriate for the Imperial Federal Government to use its police power to force an employer to pay an employee more that that employee's labor is worth to the employer.

A question for you: Do you think that it would be appropriate for the federal government to force you to pay more for a product at the store than that product is worth to you? What if the government came to you and told you that the company making the product you wish to buy just isn't making enough money. Their profit margin has been stagnant for four years, and so the government wants you to pay more for the product so that the company making the product could get more profit. Like the idea? Do you think the government should tell you what must pay more for an item from the department store or grocery shelf than it is worth? If not .. then how can you support the idea that the government should tell an employer that he has to pay a person more for his labor than it is worth?

Don't you just hate questions like that?

REDNECK SCRAP BOOK

This mailbox is also a fine tuning device. More in the Redneck Scrap Book.

READING ASSIGNMENTS

Democrats are going to do all they can to prevent Bush from sending any more troops to Iraq. What is this about? Defying Bush? Paying off their pacifist supporters? A genuine desire to see America fail in Iraq? Or do they just think it's a lost cause anyway?

Now here's a surprise. If a California Senator is going to do something irrational, you would expect it to be Barbara Boxer. Well .. not this time. Boxer seems to know that the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) isn't the warm and fuzzy Muslim organization much of our media portrays it to be. Those of you who are still fooled by our media's soft treatment of CAIR need to read this Joel Mowbray column.

In case you missed it, here is the full transcript of President Bush's speech to the nation regarding Iraq last night. 20,000 more troops to police Baghdad. Will it work? We should all hope so.

Various politicians in both parties are speaking out in opposition to the troop surge...and they intend to vote against it. But really, that's all just hot air. The only way the Congress can stop it is to de-fund the military operation itself. Not gonna happen.

Victor Davis Hanson notes the tendency of everyone to blame the United States when something doesn't go right in the world, thanks to instant global communication. We now know right away when something goes wrong anywhere in the world, thanks to technology.

There is one Democrat that has it right on Iraq...actually, he used to be a Democrat. Quin Hillyer at the American Spectator says people should listen to Joe Lieberman on Iraq...victory is possible there. He says there are only to outcomes to war: victory or defeat.

Ralph Peters reports on the success American special forces are having against Al-Qaeda in Somalia. We've got them on the run...and are having great success. Of course don't tell that to the media, who are still obsessing about Saddam Hussein's treatment at the gallows.

Ann Coulter says the phony rape case against the Duke Lacrosse students is just another in a long line of hoax hate crimes in which people are wrongly accused. She called this one from the beginning. Always entertaining and not to be missed.

Debra Saunders takes on those who say it can't get any worse in Iraq. Can't get any worse? You bet it can...how about Iraq's government collapsing and insurgents taking over. That would be bad. Do we have the will to fight and win in Iraq? Maybe.

So why did the Director of National Intelligence get pulled off the job to go be Deputy Secretary of State? Robert Novak says it's because the State Department under Condoleezza Rice is a complete mess. Inside Washington gossip from someone in the know.

So what exactly was Sandy Berger up to at the National Archives? Was he really absent-mindedly stuffing classified documents in his pants because he wanted to read them at home? Emmett Tyrrell says not at all....it appears he was up to something else.

Democrats are talking about income inequality, that is rich people making too much money and poor people not making enough. Larry Elder wants to know what the Democrats are going to do about professional athletes. Surely they make too much money.

"[Commenting on a study which suggests that women who exercise by doing the housework can reduce their risk of breast cancer] Missing the point. It's not the exercise. Joggers and Pilates people - and the sun-worshippers - are the ones getting breast cancer. The explanation is this. It is God Who gives you cancer. A woman who keeps house, and bears the children God gives her as a gift, and prays the Rosary - no abortions and no pills - will be cancer-free, all other things being equal. "Blessed is the man whom God corrects; refuse not therefore the chastising of the Lord, for He wounds and cures, He strikes and His hands shall heal" - Job." More gems like this at Fundies Say The Darndest Things.

Eweek gives us a list of the top 25 killer apps of all time.

Low-tech way to disable the RFID tag in your new passport. We're not suggesting you do this, of course.

WSB's Prostate Proactivity Campaign...get all the information you need about prostate cancer here.

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