PunditGuy

Yeah, OK, so I did it. I drank the Kool-Aid.

Gerhard Schroeder is a sore loser.

Outgoing German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder has aimed a broadside at US President George W. Bush, saying Hurricane Katrina showed what happened when a state neglected its duty.

Schroeder made his comments in a speech to a trade union in Hanover on Wednesday in which he warned of the dangers of eroding the welfare functions of the state.

“I can think of a recent disaster that shows what happens when a country neglects its duties of state towards its people,” said Schroeder, who will soon cede his post to conservative rival Angela Merkel.

“My post as chancellor, which I still hold, does not allow me to name that country but you all know that I am talking about America,” Schroeder said to laughter and applause.

Whatever.

Gerhard, it’s time for you to go.

Al Gore says he has no plans to run for president again. Riiight.

“I have absolutely no plans and no expectations of ever being a candidate again,” said Gore, who lost the 2000 election to President Bush.

However, Gore did not completely shut the door to political endeavors.

“I don’t completely rule out some future interest, but I don’t expect to have that,” he said during a visit to Sweden.

Al, we’re on to you.

Why do politicians play this game? More importantly, why does the MSM constantly publish these non-denial denials? It’s so boring.

What’s good for the goose is good for the gander, I guess.

The legal battle between Rep. Tom DeLay (search) and a Texas district attorney continued on Tuesday as DeLay’s attorneys subpoenaed the prosecutor to try to show that he acted improperly with grand jurors.

The filings made in Austin late in the day accuse Texas District Attorney Ronnie Earle (search) of misconduct and call for him and two of his assistants to appear in court to explain their conduct.

Heh. Like two little kids on the playground.

Fox News posts PDF documents of the brief in support of motion to quash indictment, a letter to Ronnie Earle, and the petition for disclosure.

Laura Bush was interviewed by Matt Lauer on the Today Show this morning and was asked if she thought sexism might be playing a role in the controversy surrounding the nomination of Harriet Miers. Mrs. Bush took the bait, and agreed with Lauer.

“It’s possible. I think that’s possible. . . . I think people are not looking at her accomplishments.”

Did Mrs. Bush intentionally bring the subject of sexism into the Miers debate? Anyone who interviews the president or his wife has to present their line of questioning to advisors ahead of time. Did Matt Lauer plan to ask the sexism question and did the White House agree that it was legitimate? One would have to believe that they did. Otherwise, Lauer would be getting spanked right now by press-secretary Scott McClellan for his inappropriate line of questioning and about how sexism isn’t a part of the debate over Miers. Well, we don’t have the push back. So…now the real question is, does the president believe that a majority of conservatives reject Harriet Miers because she’s a woman? Is the White House really trying to turn the Miers matter into a discuss of sexism?

Is anyone at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue paying attention to people like William Kristol, Charles Krauthammer, John Fund? Isn’t there someone following the evolution of this debate in the blogosphere?

Helloooooo?

The Miers issue is not one of sexism. The issue is perception. The cronyism argument is a perception. Miers lack of a judicial record leads to a perception that she won’t be able to navigate the unique waters of the Supreme Court. Her lack of gravitas leads to a perception that she’ll be weak when it comes to high caliber cases like Row.

In dozens of ways, conservative columnists, bloggers, and cable TV news pundits have been telegraphing their discontent with Miers. The problem is PERCEPTION, and due to the lack of a relevant record on Miers, the White House hasn’t been able to address this, nor have they thought they needed to.

Time has run out. Minds have been made up. The cow is not only out of the barn, it’s 50 miles down the road and the White House is sound asleep.

Terrorism doesn’t have to result in the death of humans, the destruction of buildings, or the hijacking of airplanes. A simple threat of terrorism can be just as effective. CNN reports today that our informant in Iraq admits information about a terror plot against the New York City subway was a hoax. By putting out false information, New York City was disrupted, people avoided their normal daily routines, the public walked around afraid of what ‘might’ happen…

It’s exactly what the terrorists want. They want to spread fear, doubt and uncertainty. Their mission was accomplished.

We’ve still got a long way to go.

Others: NBC11.com |

If you’re an epileptic, or easily prone to anxiety attacks, you’ll want to stay away from this site. Otherwise, turn your computer speakers up and prepare yourself for Badger Badger Badger!

See if you can stand it for more than 10 seconds…

Starting Monday, Yahoo News will publish work written by bloggers side by side with news from professional journalists.

Yahoo said its move to combine professionally edited news alongside the work of grassroots commentators promises to enrich the sources of information on breaking news events.

“Traditional media doesn’t have the time and resources to cover all the stories,” Joff Redfern, product director for Yahoo Search said. “It really does add substantially to what you are looking at when you are looking for news.”

The Reuters story quotes blogdaddy Jeff Jarvis who argues that sites like Yahoo and Google patronize bloggers by treating them like second class citizens.

Jarvis, who is a former TV critic for TV Guide and People magazines, mocked the notion that journalists live by a shared set of professional standards, that they are better trained or more trustworthy than the anyone-can-join blog movement.

“What made the voice of the people somehow less important than the paid professional journalist?” he asked. “You don’t need to have a degree, you don’t need to have a paycheck, you don’t need to have a byline,” Jarvis said.

“If you inform the public, you are committing an act of journalism,” he declared.

Indeed.

Adrian Warnock lists the Top 25 Christian Blogs (by links). After browsing the list, I’m left wondering what makes these blogs particularly ‘Christian’? There are some that are named in a way which would lead one to believe that they have some kind of biblical focus, but then there are blogs listed like Scott Ott’s ‘ScrappleFace‘, La Shawn Barber’s Place, and Hugh Hewitt’s blog. Most of what I’ve read from ScrappleFace is irreverent commentary on political news and cultural issues. I know that La Shawn and Hugh identify themselves as Christians, but their blogs are more often focused on politics and not on essays about being Christian.

Heading over to N.Z. Bear’s place, and looking at the larger list of blogs that belong to the ‘Blogdom of God’ community, it gets even more confusing. Apparently, bloggers who join the Blogdom of God group are ones who identify themselves as ‘God blogs’. Would The Anchoress really identify her site a ‘God blog’? If so, in what way? She does comment on Catholic issues from time to time, but I mostly see her site as a current events/political commentary blog. Yet, she’s identified as a member of this community. Likewise, Ian Schwartz, better known as The Political Teen runs a site that focuses heavily on video-blogging. His place is the go-to blog for breaking news video clips. I haven’t seen anything overtly ‘Christian’ about the content he publishes, yet The Political Teen is listed as being a ‘God blog’.

And then there’s ‘Dean’s World‘. Last time I checked, Dean Esmay had several articles published on his blog where he identified himself as an atheist. Why is his site labeled a ‘God blog’?

What am I missing here? I’m not looking to start a jihad, and I’m not trying to question anyone’s personal faith. I just want to understand the basis for the makeup of this community. Why would you list your site as being a member of the Blogdom of God if the content you publish doesn’t align with the identity of the group?

What purpose do blog rings like these serve if the member sites don’t necessarily focus on the community theme? How valuable is a Top 25 ‘Christian’ Blogs list when a some of the ranked sites publish content that has little or nothing to do with being Christian?

With all the recent focus on terrorism aimed squarely at New York City’s subway system, one wonders if the threat to the Big Apple is nothing more than a diversionary tactic being used by the terrorists. Are they intentionally setting a decoy in an obvious location like New York so they can successfully execute simultaneous terror events in other less logical locations throughout the country?

On October 2, 2005, an explosion outside a packed Oklahoma Memorial Stadium on the University of Oklahoma campus was first reported as an individual suicide. Later, upon further investigation by authorities, it was revealed that the suicide could have been part of a larger planned event. The explosive used by the individual, identified as 21 year-old Joel Hinrichs, contained a component called TATP (Triacetone Triperoxide), known as the ‘Mother of Satan’ by Islamist extremists. According to a report by TV station KOCO Channel Oklahoma: 

Experts say it is made by mixing common household items such as drain cleaner and bleach to create a white powder with a strong smell.

It’s so volatile that it can explode even if it’s merely dropped. It can even explode spontaneously, experts say.

There have been very few reports of TATP being used in the United States; however, there have been more documented cases overseas — including Richard Reid, who was arrested after he used TATP in his shoe and tried to light it on a flight.

More clues about Hinrichs came to light on October 4, 2005, in a report from the AP:

The Pakistani roommate of a man authorities said died when he detonated an explosive device outside a crowded football stadium was led in handcuffs from a party shortly after Saturday’s explosion, the head of an Islamic student group said.

Fazal M. Cheema, a finance major, shared a university-owned apartment with Joel Hinrichs III, 21, who died Saturday when a device attached to his body exploded as he sat on a bench outside George Lynn Cross Hall.

Cheema and three other Muslim students were led in handcuffs from a party by police after the blast, Ashraf Hussein, president of the Muslim Student Association, said Tuesday. They later were released.

Cheema is “a really, really nice guy,” Hussein said.

A day later, journalist / blogger Mark Tapscott brought this information on Hinrichs:

A Lincoln Town Car believed driven by OU Suicide Bomber Joel Henry Hinrichs III remains in the parking lot of the apartment where he lived and a U.S. Department of Justice inventory of the contents found by law enforcement officials is visible on the seat, Tapscott’s Copy Desk has learned.

Among the items listed on the inventory are “13 plastic bottles” in the trunk. The inventory did not note if there was anything in the bottles, their size or coloration.

Other items on the inventory include a title, insurance certificate, a 2003 Rand McNally Road Atlas and two other highway maps with indecipherable titles. The car’s license tag is Oklahoma VUL014, with a February 2006 expiration date. Tapscott’s Copy Desk has also learned that a tree near where Hinrichs’ bomb detonated displays a number of small round holes and some areas of a metallic substance.

Ever since then, a variety of bloggers have been following the drama (see Malkin, Tapscott, and Hoft). They have collectively found that the FBI is now rather tight-lipped about their investigation into Hinrichs and the event of October 2nd. In fact, the whole thing has had very limited play among the MSM.

Last Friday, an explosive device was found on the campus of UCLA.

Now today, news is breaking about bombs found on the campus of Georgia Tech. TV station WXIA reports that three explosive devices were found in a courtyard between two dormitories. Atlanta police have called it a terrorist act. An additional bit of evidence was found which could link today’s event with the earlier one in Oklahoma. The explosives found on the GT campus were made up of chemicals placed inside plastic bottles, similar to the ones found in the trunk of Hinrichs car.

We’re left now with lots of lingering questions about these events. Are they linked? If so, are they part of a coordinated effort by American recruits of Al-Qaeda? By assuming that New York, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles and other large US cities are logical targets for terrorism, are we being lured into taking our eyes off of smaller, low key locations that when combined, could destroy more infrastructure and kill more Americans than those lost on 9/11?

I hope not.