What Would Papa Do?

So I was polishing my old Beretta A390 shotgun today in preperation for a hunting trip and I started thinking about life and death and nature. Pretty philosophical stuff, maybe it was the powder solvent I was using! I grew up in the rural South and I grew up hunting, especially ducks and geese, and fishing, it was something my dad and I did to bond over. As I got older and went off to college, I stopped going and I started to look upon killing animals as not something that I wanted to do. Perhaps it was my series of vegetarian girlfriends but thats another post altogether. As a grew older I began to realize that it was rather hypocritical for me to buy chicken at the grocery that was raised in cages and killed by some poor immigrant worker. I was paying someone else to do my killing. I am now once again an avid hunter as well as a Sierra Club and Nature Conservancy member. The animals I kill have had a much better life than some poor chicken thats been pumped full of hormones and antibiotics and forced to live in a cage. I somehow feel better eating the goose or duck or venison that I killed and butchered myself, maybe its my carnivore inner Neanderthal coming out, but I have to say that my appreciation and respect for nature has been a direct result of spending long periods in the woods and waters of Virginia. I am at peace with my place on the foodchain.

Jim Webb Is The Shit

So the Washington Post is reporting that the White House hosted an event last week for incoming members of the Senate and Jim Webb attended. Webb has a son who is in the Marine Corps and is serving in Iraq. Bush asked him, "How's your boy?' Webb replies, "When are you going to bring them home?" W replies, "Thats not what I asked, I asked hows your boy." Webb replies, "Thats between me and my boy Mr. President." That fucking rules! Webb has real cajones to stand up to W on his home turf. Webb is a crusty old Marine officer who calls it like he sees it. Screw being nice to a chickenhawk who has set back US foriegn policy for the next 20 years. Give em hell Jim!

Influential Americans

I am a subscriber to The Atlantic Monthly, and I have to say it is a great magazine, with well written articles on foreign policy and interesting historical pieces as well. This month they published the 100 most influential Americans, they were chosen by a panel of ten historians and professors including David Kennedy and Doris Kearns Goodwin. The top ten were 1.Lincoln
2.Washington
3.Jefferson
4.FDR
5.Hamilton
6. Ben Franklin
7.John Marshal
8.MLK
9.Edison
10.Woodrow Wilson
I have to disagree with that list. C'mon no Madison the architect of the Constitution or Jackson? Edison, Hamilton and John Marshal aren't in the top ten. The list also has no JFK, but it includes Brigham Young and Joseph Smith? Two guys who started a religion that 2% of the population adheres to make the list but not the President who led us through the Cuban Missle Crisis? They also list Reagan at 17th ahead of Harry Truman, which I disagree with, Reagan belongs in the top 20 but not ahead of Truman. Anyhow these lists are always fun to read and you really can't argue with the top 4, Lincoln, Washington , Jefferson, and FDR, pretty solid there. Great food for thought.

Rupert Pulls The Plug

So the most disgusting story of the last week, double killer OJ Simpson will not be allowed to air his FOX broadcast about how he "would" have killed his ex and Ron Goldman. The House that OJ built, FOX has decided to pull this disgusting tripe from the airwaves after they were facing an internal revolt from their affiliates and personalities like Bill O'Reilly. Murdoch also owns Judith Regans publishing co. that is doing this sordid book. Murdoch and the FOXIEs have made millions on these murders and I guess Rupert decided to finally have a bit of a conscious or perhaps a bit of shame. Just shows how depraved Murdoch and Newscorp is and how it took a public outcry to pull the plug on this. Greedy, tabloid news spewing, Aussie bastards!

OpinionJournal - Featured Article

OpinionJournal - Featured Article
This has to be one of the best things I have read from a politician in years. Jim Webb just may be the future of the Democratic Party.

The Best Man Won

Well, Speaker Pelosi has lost her first battle. She wanted Jack Murtha to be Majority leader over Steny Hoyer who was in line for the position. Murtha of course is a hard critic of the Iraq war, and an outspoken critic of W's policies, which I generally agree with, but he is prone to grandstanding and making wild accusations. The real reason that I am glad that he lost to Hoyer is that he is a corrupt old bastard. He was caught on camera 28 years ago during ABSCAM sort of taking 50 grand from some slimy fake middle eastern sheiks. To me Murtha is just as bad as Delay, Cunningham, Ney, and Jefferson, just another corrupt Congressman. The House Dems made the right call here, the people voted for change, and despite my agreeing with Murtha on his basic premise that Iraq was a mistake, he's still a crook and has no business in my parties leadership.

I Friggin Hate Cigarettes.

So I read an AP story yesterday that said with the Democrats back in power, tobacco may be regulated as a drug and more laws against smoking may be in the works. Here in VA a GOP state senator has introduced an indoor smoking ban the last two sessions of the General Assembly and last year it almost passed. That would be amazing if in the home of Philip Morris we could get that law through. Cigarettes are vile and 2nd hand smoke kills. Screw all the idiot smokers who say these bans infringe on their rights. Most of them will end up dying of smoking related diseases that will make my health care costs go up, or because many of them end up indigant my taxes go up. I'm in favor of giving smokers one year to quit and if you don't you can't get health insurance, its pay as you go for your lung cancer and emphysema or let big tobacco pay for the care of their profit base. Screw em.

Weddings Rock

Well I went and got myself hitched on Saturday. Heres an early pic of the new Mr. and Mrs. Mitchell. The wedding was great, weather was sunny and nearly 80 degrees, not bad for Virginia in November. Thanks to all and especially to Matt, Curt, and Brian. Ah wedded bliss......

Finally

So this week ground was finally broken for a memorial to Dr. King. High time in my opinion that one of the greatest men of the past century is honored. King stood for all that is right and good with this country, and its a shame that it has taken almost forty years to properly honor the man,

Adios Rummy!!!

If you had told me a few months ago that on this day the Democrats would hold both Houses of Congress and Rummy would get kicked out on his keister, I would have said you were dreaming! Pinch me please. My faith in the inherent goodness and intelligence of the American people has been restored in spades. Halleleujah!!

Landslide

The Democratic juggernaut was impressive. I predicted a takeover of the House but picking up over 30 seats? Amazing! Looks like the Senate may be in our hands. Here in VA Webb looks to have won by about 7000 votes, but if Allen wants a recount we won't know till December. Hopefully Tester holds out in Montana. If this happens W better take a quick lesson in humility and compromise if he doesn't want his ass impeached. Happy Days are here again!!

VOTE

Well we are nigh on election eve, I really hope the GOP is thrown out on their cans. I am optimistic and I feel especially good about the Senate race here in VA. Its gonna be a long night. Just for the record here in the Commonwealth I predict Jim Webb 51% Felix Allen 48% Gail Parker(I) 1% I hope I'm right.

Oh My

So Rev. Haggard who is the leader of the evangelical Christians, who has provided counsel to W has been outed by a gay prostitute. This hypocrite has railed against gays and gay marriage for years, while secretly sneaking around on his wife and five kids to have sex with a hooker. Nice. It never ceases to amaze me that the people on the right who howl the loudest against immoral behavior, and the "gay agenda " turn out to be the biggest hypocrites. Sad.

HAHA

So someone who never lets us forget how intellectually superior she is has been charged with voter fraud in Fla, which is a felony. Apparently Ms. Coulter forgot which precint she votes in. Come on Ann, someone as supposedly smart as you should know where to cast your ballot!

RIP William Styron

One of my favorite writers passed away yesterday at the age of 81. William Styron was born in Newport News VA, which is where I was born. His novels were to me a revelation when I discovered them in college. The Confessions of Nat Turner, Lie Down in Darkness, and Sophie's Choice are some of the finest American novels of the last half of the 20th century. Styrons early novels chronicled life in the South and explored the lifes of the black and white denizons of Tidewater Virginia. To me he was a natural heir to Faulkner, but his prose had much in common with Hemingway and even Fitzgerald. The Confessions of Nat Turner chronicled the only slave insurrection in the US that almost succeded, and it is a riveting fictional account of Turner and the event. The insurrection took place in Southampton County Va, which is adjacent to Isle of Wight County where I grew up. I remember after reading the book, driving to Southampton and looking for the state historical marker that chronicled such an important event in history, to my shock there was no mention of the rebellion, this was in the early 1990's. A group of historians and writers including Styron appealed for some recognition of the event and a marker was put up, but the event showed to me how dark and buried the past was in my native Tidewater. Styron was a gifted writer and a brave person who chronicled his bout with crippling depression in his memoir Darkness Visable. Styron's death has robbed us of one of our finest writers.