Random Thoughts from November 3, 2000

Well, we've done the anti-Bush stuff... Let's get to the anti-Gore stuff. I realise one or the other will probably win, but I want to make it very clear that I don't approve of either one... This, actually is as much pro-Bush as it is anti-Gore. Ignore that. They both suck.


From: Braveheart

* Veritas Vos Liberabit *
Date: 03 November 2000

SPECIAL EDITION -- E-DAY 2000

CONTENTS:
The Founders
Perspective
Insight
Upright
Editorial Exegesis
Second Opinion
Body Politic
Dezinformatsia
Village Idiots
Short Cuts

______--------********O********--------______
THE FOUNDERS

"A nation which can prefer disgrace to danger is prepared for a master, and deserves one!" --Alexander Hamilton

______--------********O********--------______
SPECIAL EDITION -- E-DAY 2000

If Republicans can muster enough votes next Tuesday to elect George Bush as its next president, that will be a rather remarkable achievement. Conservatives have been demoralized for the last 8 years -- some would say 12 years -- in the absence of the strong leadership and voice Ronald Reagan provided. To make matters worse, the mass media have never let its relentless advocacy of liberal causes fade. Imagine -- just imagine -- what the political landscape would look like if the television and print media were staffed by "objective journalists" who were not constantly inundating us with their whistling the left's tune....

It can be fairly said that the clearest difference between George W. Bush and Albert Gore is that Mr. Bush has repeatedly defended the notion of constitutional federalism -- states' rights -- while Gore's solutions are all predicated on central government micro-management of individual behavior, and redistribution of the nation's capital from the "wrong people" to the "right people," er...uh, the "left people."

It can also be said that the campaign rhetoric pits Bush's voice of unification against Gore's voice of division. The Sociocrats have mastered the art of dividing people into special interest constituencies, and keeping each group sufficiently isolated from the mainstream to maintain the fiction of their perceived dependence on the central government.

In the closing days of this quadrennial campaign, Mr. Bush has summarized his opponent's vision: "[Gore] is spending without discipline, spending without priorities, spending without end. He is not reinventing the federal government, he is reinvigorating the federal government. He offers a new federal spending program to nearly every voting bloc. He expands entitlements, without reforms to sustain them. Gore offers an old and tired approach. And when others, Republican or Democrat, propose needed reform in Social Security, Medicare or education, he opposes and attacks and demonizes them.

"These are not the policies of the 1990s. These are the same policies that threatened our economy in the 1970s. And when Ronald Reagan changed those policies in the 1980s, my opponent was there, opposing him. Add Gore's spending up, and you get a $2 trillion spending spree over 10 years. Twelve times while in Congress, Al Gore was rated a 'big spender' by the National Taxpayers Union. Three of those times, he earned the worst rating of any member of Congress. Considering the competition, that's quite an achievement."

For his part, at every campaign stop, Gore asks, "Are you better now than you were eight years ago?" It is a question begging an answer. Are our children better now than they were eight years ago? Have they and our nation had the benefit of the highest order of ethical and moral leadership from Clinton-Gore? Have honor, truth, duty, and integrity prospered?

For the final word on Gore and the pathology of his ilk, see today's Second Opinion feature, "The Liberal Case Study -- One Big Dysfunctional Family."

In other news...

It's that time of the political season -- when the "black bag" teams show their stuff. Unless you were on Mars for the last 24 hours, you have probably heard that George Bush got a citation for driving while intoxicated -- 24 years ago. They're after Ralph Nader also, raising questions about his "sexual orientation" as he has never been married.

Here are the pertinent details concerning Mr. Bush. In 1976, when he was still unmarried, W. visited his parents in Maine on Labor Day (as if "labor" has not already done all they can for Al Gore). Bush, an alcoholic who cleaned up 14 years ago "when I committed my life to Christ," has never lied about his past, admitting repeatedly to "making mistakes" back when he was still using alcohol. When asked by the Dallas Morning News in 1997 if he had ever been arrested for DUI, Mr. Bush responded, "I do not have a perfect record.... When I was young, I did a lot of foolish things. But I will tell you this, I urge people not to drink and drive. It's an important message for all people to hear."

Mr. Bush was stopped by a local police officer who described him as "the perfect gentleman." His blood-alcohol level was at the minimum for intoxication -- then 0.10 -- he pled guilty as charged, paid a fine and, notably, unlike the plethora of excuses for all manner of behavior and deceit we have heard from Gore, Mr. Bush never made any effort to excuse his behavior or have the charges reduced.

Regarding Mr. Bush's "mistakes," we recall this comment from Ronald Reagan: "You know, by the time you've reached my age you've made plenty of mistakes if you've lived your life properly." Indeed!

As for the timing of this "news release," We have confirmed that the Maine lawyer, who broadcast-faxed the 1976 arrest report to media outlets around the nation, was a delegate to the Democrat National Convention, and the existence of the citation was made know to Democrat officials before it was released.

Let's see if any reporter asks Al Gore this weekend, if he has ever driven after using alcohol or marijuana. (Perhaps they should ask if he has ever operated heavy equipment down on the farm while intoxicated.) It won't happen....

Quote of the week...

"The presidential election will say more about the American people than it will about the candidates. You have Al Gore, who has the support of the homosexual crowd, the infanticide crowd, the feminist crowd, the socialist crowd and the Hollywood crowd. You have George Bush, who is supported by the pro-life crowd, the pro-Constitution crowd, the military crowd and the pro-traditional-values crowd. Don't let anyone tell you there isn't a clear choice. ... I'm tired of a bunch of low lifes who hold the military in contempt, who expand its missions while shrinking its resources, who insist on homosexualizing and feminizing the armed forces, and who make sure no one but politically correct bootlicks make it to high command ranks. I'm also tired of lies, evasions, character assassination, extreme partisanship and outright corruption. I'm tired of a so-called strong economy in which nearly 60 percent of the mothers in America have to work in order to maintain a decent standard of living. I'm tired of an administration that lusts to surveil and disarm the innocent rather than deal with criminals. I'm tired of an administration that speaks in George Orwell's newspeak. I'm tired of an administration that openly shows contempt for the Constitution." --Charley Reese

And another...

"The 'Desperation Index,' a reliable election indicator, shows the Gore campaign rocketing up the desperation charts. Only [Sunday], Joe Lieberman -- after renewing his offer of respects to America's most virulent anti-Semite -- found nothing wrong with a TV spot paid for by the NAACP that associates George W. Bush with dragging a black man to death. While Republicans condemn such below-the-belt ads by extremist supporters, desperate Democrats accept all the racist or senior-scaring help they can get. ... Nowhere is Democratic desperation more evident than in the liberals' savaging of Ralph Nader. The same crowd that stood on principle for Pat Buchanan's right to draw votes from Bush now frantically accuses Nader of hypocrisy, egomania and unforgivable spoilerism for daring to offer voters a chance to voice their protest." --William Safire

On cross-examination...

"Unlike [the Republicans], I've apologized to the American people for what I did wrong, and most Americans think I paid a pretty high price ..They never apologized to the country for impeachment. They've never apologized for all the things they've done." --Bill Clinton in an Esquire magazine interview, on the Republican need for atonement.

Sen. Trent Lott responded, "If there is any apology to be made, he owes it over and over again for what he put the country through." More to the point, Lyn Nofziger adds, "Actually there are five Republican senators who should apologize -- for not voting to find him guilty."

The BIG lie...

"I don't ever want to see another era of big government. I'm opposed to big government... I'm for a smaller, smarter government.... I don't believe there's a government solution to every problem. I don't believe any government program can replace the responsibility of parents, the hard work of families, or the innovation of industry." --Vice Prevaricator Albert Gore

And another...

More Gore: "I've spent 24 years working for working people. Nine times I've taken an oath to the Constitution and I have never violated that oath. I haven't spent the last quarter century trying to accumulate wealth." **He most certainly has spent the "last quarter century trying to accumulate wealth" of power.

And more...

''I have spent many a Saturday night in a small courthouse filling out forms related to black lung. I've looked into the eyes of those who have been broken down by it, abused by it, who have had their health taken from them by it, and I'm telling you, I will never rest until we have justice for those who have been denied justice, and benefits for those who are eligible for those benefits.'' --Gore, lying to union miners in W.VA. (He just can't help himself.) United Mine Workers President Cecil Roberts says, "Cutting the black lung clinics would be a death sentence for thousands of people." Gore did not mention that in 1996 and again in 1997, he and Clinton proposed to cut the Black Lung Clinics Program by 50%. Republicans in Congress rejected the Clinton-Gore cut and increased the health program's funding by 25%.

Exposing the BIG lie...

"I believe Al Gore is a habitual liar, yes. It's not easy to say, but the record says it. It's not just people like me who are supporting George Bush who believe it. His own Democrat Party spokesmen have said it a number of times." --Bill Bennett

And more exposure...

"Mr. Gore is egalitarian in his lies, whether they are about creating the Internet, discovering the Love Canal, serving as the basis for the novel, 'Love Story,' authoring the Earned Income Tax Credit, a story about a particular crowded Florida class room, an old lady collecting tin cans, a Buddhist temple, or listening to songs that were not written until after he said he heard them -- to name a few examples. Ordinarily in such a case you would not send a man to the White House -- you would send him to the nut house. The voting public should not have to become psychoanalysts to figure out Mr. Gore's complexes and the insecurities that might cause him to lie." --Jackie Mason and Raoul Felder

And yet again...

"I no longer admire the VP, no longer trust his character or integrity. Al, I mistook your ambition for leadership. Your struggle with the truth is depressing." --Henderson Hillin, longtime Gore supporter and author of his 1988 biography, "Al Gore Jr.: Born to Lead."

From the "Trickle-Down Ethics" Files...

"The president is actually, I think, probably the vice president's No. 1 cheerleader." --White House Chief of Staff John Podesta

Of course, it's a mutual admiration society. Consider Gore's comments on Clinton's impeachment: "Let me say simply, the president has acknowledged that what he did was wrong. But we must all acknowledge that invoking the solemn power of impeachment in the cause of partisan politics is wrong. Wrong for our Constitution, wrong for the United States of America. The man I believe will be regarded in the history books as one of our greatest presidents...I am proud to present to you my friend, America's great president, Bill Clinton."

Would you buy this used Veep from Bill Clinton?

News from the Swamp...

In the people's legislature, they sent it up, but Clinton vetoed Congress's fiscal 2001 budget, a ploy to keep incumbent Republicans in town right through election day rather than let them return to their districts and campaign for their seats. Clinton claimed, "The Congress's continued refusal to focus on the priorities of the American people leave me no alternative but to veto this bill." The bill included a repeal of the 3% federal telephone tax enacted in 1896 to pay for the Spanish-American War -- implying that it is a "priority of the American people" to continue paying $4 billion each year to defeat the Spaniards. Of course, Mr. Bush does have a lot of Hispanic support....

Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott said of Clinton's veto: "We're prepared to stay. We're prepared to find fair common ground. But we're not just going to give him the things he's demanding. ... In other words, we're prepared to stay here to defend what we think is right, rather than closing up shop and going home. We've made it clear now that we're willing to stand on principle." That's a novel idea! Majority Whip Don Nickles seconded: "I think President Clinton wants a confrontation with Congress. If he wants one, he can have it. We're not going to capitulate."

In other matters before the House, regarding the Gore secret "wink and nod" at Russian arms for Iran, Clinton-Gore are, as always, stonewalling congressional investigators. They are refusing to turn over documents regarding the secret deal. "It is my hope that we can avoid the issuance of a subpoena," said Rep. Ben Gilman. "If our deadline is not met, then we will have to consider using subpoena authority."

Memo to Mr. Gilman: Clinton-Gore use subpoenas as doormats.

Judicial Benchmarks...

In the halls of injustice on the left, U.S. District Court Chief Judge Jerry Buchmeyer struck down a Wichita Falls, Texas, ordinance permitting library patrons to petition their town library to have books deemed unsuitable for children moved to the adult section. Library patrons were successful in transferring two books with homosexual themes to the adult section, before Judge Buchmeyer ruled the ordinance violated "federal and state constitutional rights to receive information."

Regarding your IRS overpayment...

In the fiscal year just ended, the central government took in $237 billion more from taxpayers than its expenses. The total tax bill now represents about 20% of GDP -- the highest since WWII. Of this surplus, columnist Balint Vazsonyi notes, "For some time now, the astonishing -- and growing -- size of the federal budget surplus has been reverberating around Washington. ...Budget surplus? Such a phenomenon could have occurred only if the Internal Revenue Service collected more in taxes than was necessary to fund the items agreed to between the Congress and the President of the United States. Anyone who has ever filed a Form 1040 knows the proper designation for such a state of affairs. It is called OVERPAYMENT."

From the department of military readiness...

As we reported last week, Red Chinese Gen. Yu Yongbo, a member of Beijing's Central Military Commission, took some time out from his official Clinton-Gore sanctioned visits to U.S. military bases and spent an afternoon at Disney World. Well, isn't that special!

The "Dumb and Dumber" Department...

"Dumbing down" is not unique to the American government education system. In a recent survey by the London Guardian, fewer than one-third of Britons 18 to 24 years old could identify Prime Minister Winston Churchill.

In business news...

"Any campaign that practices this kind of demagoguery on a fundamental institution in our society should be ashamed of themselves," says U.S. Chamber of Commerce president Thomas Donohue about Gore's "disgusting" business-bashing rhetoric, while at the same time, taking credit for the strong economy to boost his campaign.

Around the world...

Only two days left for Clinton-Gore to bomb Osama bin Laden -- or some ostensible facsimile thereof -- in time for the gaggle of Algorista spinmeisters to appear on the Sunday talkinghead networks heralding the bombing as an example of Gore's "leadership" in the region. The Gore campaign has been in a quandary.... Bomb now -- which would upset "peace talks" -- or hold out for a cease-fire and herald that as an example of Gore's leadership in the region.

The gambit for a brief cease-fire may pay off, but, as Don Feder notes, "What's happening in Israel is more jihad than Intifada. As such, it is part of a worldwide phenomenon and can only be understood in that context." The implications for U.S. national interests in the region are ominous.

They will have to burn some cruise missile unless, of course, they can come up with some 24-year old DUI citation to derail the Bush campaign.

In other news from abroad, Redcoat PM Tony Blair cancelled an important trip to Moscow this weekend to address the impending threat of nationwide protests over high fuel taxes -- which he has refused to repeal. Fuel prices in Europe are at new highs.

Memo to Al: About that phony ploy releasing fuel from our Strategic Petroleum Reserve.... It appears, as we previously warned, that most of it will be sucked up by demand in Old England, and never make it to the cellars of Demo-voters in New England. And, as for your recent claim, "I'm not in favor of energy taxes," we checked, and on Page 173 of your now-legendary diatribe "Earth in the Balance," you say that "higher taxes on fossil fuels...is one of the logical first steps in changing our policies in a manner consistent with a more responsible approach to the environment." Perhaps Mr. Blair read your book.

Culture comment...

According to the most recent Census Bureau data, of the 3.7 million American moms with infant children, 59% of them worked in 1998. Twenty years ago, that figure was 31%. Of note, in the average two-income household, most of the second income is used to pay the family's share of federal, state and local taxes.

Faith Matters...

In news from the "Village Church" bulletin, the Presbyterian Church (USA) has produced "Christian and Citizen 2000 Election Packet," a voter guide. According to Ms. Elenora Giddings Ivory, director of the PCUSA's Washington office, the guide is to help Presbyterians "wrestle with the issues of this year's political campaign." Despite the fact that 55% of the PCUSA's members identify themselves as "Republican," the voter guide reads like a platform page from "Amerika2000 -- the Demo-lition." The guide recommends support for: affirmative action, civil unions for homosexual couples, gun control, hate crimes legislation, abortion "choice," cuts to military spending and the so-called "progressive" rates of taxation. The guide recommends opposition to: capital punishment and school vouchers. (Of course, the guide was composed inside the Beltway by church bureaucRATs suffering from chronic Potomac Fever.)

On the frontiers of junk science...

It was dueling Rand Corp. reports this week. Just in time for Gore to challenge Mr. Bush's strong education record, Rand produced a 14-page "Issue Paper" critical of Texas education. However, three months ago, Rand published a comprehensive 271-page study declaring that Texas schoolchildren of all races and income levels were performing better than their counterparts in other states. Did someone say "Pentagon Papers"?

And last, we found the perfect word to -- we hope -- summarize next week's election. It is -- "algor mortis: (al'gúr môr't=s) n. The cooling of the body that follows its demise

______--------********O********--------______
INSIGHT

"No one has the right to thrust himself into the affairs of others in order to further their interest, and no one ought, when he has his own interests in view, to pretend that he is acting selflessly only in the interests of others." --Ludwig von Mises {} "Men of no more than ordinary discernment never rate any person higher than he appears to rate himself." --Adam Smith {} "An armed society is a polite society." --Robert Heinlein {} "Private property, though the enemy of equality, is the ally of equity." --James Q. Wilson {} "The true danger is when liberty is nibbled away, for expedients." --Edmund Burke {} "Hypocrisy is the homage vice pays to virtue." --La Rochefoucauld {} "Republic ... it means people can live free, talk free, go or come, buy or sell, be drunk or sober, however they choose." --John Wayne {} "We can foresee a time when...the only people at liberty will be prison guards who will then have to lock up one another." --Albert Camus {} "Our privileges can be no greater than our obligations. The protection of our rights can endure no longer than the performance of our responsibilities." --John F. Kennedy {} "I can remember way back when a liberal was one who was generous with his money."--Will Rogers {} "Hain't we got all the fools in town on our side? And ain't that a big enough majority in any town?" --Mark Twain {} "Promises may get thee Friends, but Nonperformance will turn them into Enemies." --Benjamin Franklin {} "Wickedness is always easier than virtue; for it takes the short cut to everything." --Samuel Johnson {} "They called it the Reagan revolution...but for me it always seemed more like the great rediscovery, a rediscovery of our values and our common sense." --Ronald Reagan

______--------********O********--------______
UPRIGHT

"Fortunately for America, George W. Bush understands...the ultimate government 'safety net' is a straitjacket." --Linda Bowles ++ "If Al Gore -- or any member of the adversary press now sneering at George Bush's service with the Air National Guard -- ever took off in [his] F-102, they wouldn't be able to relieve themselves for two weeks." --Ann Coulter ++ "He offers an alternative and potentially powerful vision for black America, one that rejects pandering, paternalism and what Mr. Bush calls the 'soft bigotry of low expectations.' ... [As a result], Mr. Bush may lose the black vote on Nov. 7, but for black Americans much more is at stake." --Jason L. Riley ++ "At some point, black voters are going to rebel against racist ploys to keep them in their place -- safe in the clutches of the Democratic Party. But Al Gore and Joe Lieberman are hoping that it won't be this year." --Linda Chavez ++ "Eight years of Clinton Gore have created, both in attitude and deed, an executive branch that is becoming independent of law. After another term or two of Clinton Gore, law would issue from the mouth of the executive." --Paul Craig Roberts ++ "I ask you: Is this the American trend that you want for your children and grandchildren one where there's rule by men, not rule of law?" --Walter Williams ++ "There is still hunger for virtue in American life." --Charles Colson ++ "... [I]t would be presumptuous indeed for American believers to ignore the fact that their beloved nation was founded on an explicit Declaration that it is God's truth that makes men free." --Alan Keyes ++ "Christian hypocrisy is bad enough. But let's not overlook hypocrisy among the critics of Christianity." --Joseph Sobran ++ "Culturally, the present age is a vast stony desert. We are living on the glories of the past." --John Derbyshire ++ "The most important Cabinet post to be filled in 2001 is the secretary of defense. For America's sake, let's hope we choose a new president with the savvy to make the right pick." --David Hackworth ++ "Nobody would put as little thought and effort into buying an automobile as they put into deciding who to elect as President of the United States." --Thomas Sowell ++ "Vote freedom first. Everything else is a distant and forgettable second place. Instead of fighting redcoats, we are now fighting blue blood elitists." --NRA's Charlton Heston ++ "If Gore wins, he will owe victory to extraordinary turnout by black and labor voters and to the apparent weaknesses of his opponent. But the myths the Democrats carried into the year are exploded already." --Michael Kelly

______--------********O********--------______
EDITORIAL EXEGESIS

"America needs a fresh start, and Gov. George W. Bush is more likely to provide that than Vice President Al Gore." --The Hartford Courant, the largest paper in Joe Lieberman's home state of Connecticut, endorsing Mr. Bush. The Courant endorsed Clinton-Gore in 1992 and 1996, and is taking heavy fire for this endorsement.

"The Republican Texas governor has demonstrated the rare combination of humanity, humility and leadership in using the limited power of his office to lead and push a dynamic and growing state with grace, dignity and confidence." --Austin American-Statesman, endorsing Mr. Bush.

______--------********O********--------______
SECOND OPINION

THE LIBERAL CASE STUDY -- ONE BIG DYSFUNCTIONAL FAMILY

"A developing child in a dysfunctional family searches his parent's face for signals that he is whole and all is right with the world; when he finds no such approval, he begins to feel that something is wrong inside. And because he doubts his worth and authenticity, he begins controlling his inner experience -- smothering spontaneity, masking emotion, diverting creativity into robotic routine, and distracting an awareness of all he is missing with an unconvincing replica of what he might have been." --Al Gore in his epoch diatribe, "Earth in the Balance."

Much has been said of Al Gore's obsessive prevarication. But underlying his deception and its trademark -- hypocrisy -- is the universal identifying pathology of contemporary American leftists. They compose one big dysfunctional family, which Gore -- unwittingly -- describes in his book. Liberals have coalesced to form a family-wide delusion, which is projected outside the family in an effort to entice the external community's support -- and they won't be satisfied until we are all dysfunctional children, all parroting their delusions.

"Earth in the Balance" is now the holy writ of the eco-theological cult making up the core of his dysfunctional family of sycophants. The idolatry it sets up -- earth worship -- is the family's central thematic delusion. "We are joining forces for an enduring cause: to protect the air, the water and the planet God gave us," Gore told his followers. "I want you to know that's a cause I have held for my entire life, long before I entered public service."

Gore adulterates the Holy Bible to support his delusion. "Indeed," he writes, "the first instance of 'pollution' in the Bible occurs when Cain slays Abel." Cain had "defiled the ground" with Abel's blood. Of course, it was not Abel's blood on the ground which displeased God, but Cain's act of spilling Abel's blood. But the latter notion is lost on Gore.

Exemplifying his delusion, Gore said in one presidential debate, "In my faith tradition, it's written in the book of Matthew, 'Where your heart is, there is your treasure also.' And I believe that we ought to recognize the value to our children and grandchildren of taking steps that preserve the environment in a way that's good for them." But Christ actually said, "Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." Gore's "faith tradition" bumbling of this passage turns its meaning on end. But no matter to him, if that end justifies the means.

Further characterizing the liberal family's delusion is the inherent hypocrisy of all it advocates. (Incidentally, later in book of Matthew, Christ warns us to "be not as the hypocrites.") That hypocrisy is omnipresent in the policies Gore promotes.

For example, though Gore argues for protecting the earth in its natural state, virtually all of his political prescriptions violate the natural state of man. This hypocrisy typifies the depth of the family's delusion. Gore is an advocate of Darwinian evolution while, simultaneously, his initiatives violate every tenet of the natural state of man. He advocates policies which empower the weakest and least productive, and weakens the strongest or most productive. He is an advocate of homosexuality, though that violates the most basic elements of God's design.

Gore believes that even the most minute of organisms should be protected in its natural order, but when it comes to the order of man, he wants to use every artificial means to enforce equality. His active cadre talk about equality, but they emanate from, and cater to, the most elite.

Gore practices vicious demagoguery when it comes to private enterprise, yet he campaigns on the "strong economy." He hates "big oil" but owns $500,000 worth of Occidental Petroleum stock. He argues for better housing for the poor -- except for his impoverished tenants. He is strong on the environment -- except when it is an income-producing mining operation on his property.

Gore preaches "tolerance" but tolerates only those of like mind and ilk. He defends the "right" to kill the most innocent of all -- unborn children -- while opposing the death penalty for the most heinous of criminals. He is "pro-choice" on abortion but not education, though he and his family have all attended exclusive private schools. He opposes prayer in government schools yet preaches his aberrant politics from the pulpits of black churches.

Gore says he wants to free black Americans by chaining them to the lie that they won't ever be free without the help of Sociocrats and the central government. He says he opposes quotas but supports affirmative action.

Albert Gore wants to tax all but the most destitute Americans -- redistributing wealth to "those who need it most." Yet, two years ago, Gore, who is one of "the wealthiest 1%" he speaks of with such contempt, could only find it in his heart to give $353 of his income to support destitute Americans.

All of this delusional hypocrisy exposes the dysfunctional family's underlying self-contempt, masquerading as Gore's narcissistic crusade to keep "Earth in the Balance." Gore adequately summarizes his family's "insatiable search for what, sadly, can never be found: unconditional love and acceptance."

"There is a powerful psychological reason that the rules go unquestioned in a dysfunctional family. Infants and developing children are so completely dependent that they cannot afford even to think that there is something wrong with the parent, even if the rules do not feel right or make sense. Since children cannot bear to identify the all-powerful parent as the source of dysfunctionality, they assume that the problem is within themselves. This is the crucial moment when the inner psychological wound is inflicted -- and it is a self-inflicted wound, a fundamental loss of faith by the children in themselves. The pain of that wound often lasts an entire lifetime, and the emptiness and alienation that result can give rise to enormous amounts of psychological energy, expended during the critical period when the psyche is formed in an insatiable search for what, sadly, can never be found: unconditional love and acceptance. ... It is not uncommon for one member of a dysfunctional family to exhibit symptoms of a serious psychological disorder that will be found, upon scrutiny, to be the outward manifestation of a pattern of dysfunctionality that includes the entire family."

______--------********O********--------______
BODY POLITIC

From the Bush campaign journal...

At the Republican convention in August, George Bush said that he would "keep the promise of Social Security...no changes, no reductions, no way. Our opponents will say otherwise. This is their last, parting ploy, and don't believe a word of it." As he anticipated, the Democrats' last push is to scare older Americans into thinking Bush will leave them out in the cold.

And that's not all...

Gore's campaign has all but called George Bush a racist for not supporting so-called "hate crimes." Gore uses the body of James Byrd, a black American killed by racists in rural Texas two years ago, as a stump for his campaign speeches in black churches. He never mentions, however, while there were nine suspected racially motivated murders last year, there were more than 10,000 black people murdered by other black people -- but there is little political capital in that statistic.

On Gore's behalf, the NAACP is now running graphic TV ads about the death of Mr. Byrd. In defense of those ads, NAACP Chairman Julian Bond says, "If there had been hate-crimes legislation, all three of the men who dragged James Byrd to his death would have been put to death in Texas [instead of just two]." Interestingly, after making that comment in defense of the ad, Bond said he does not support the death penalty. "That's right. I don't." The hypocrisy is thick on this one!

All the attacks aside, Mr. Bush continues to hold his own and stay on message.

Mr. Bush received the endorsement of Ross Perot Thursday, who himself received 29 million votes as the Reform candidate in 1992 and1996. Perot said: "He has done an outstanding job as governor. Here's a man who I have never heard anybody criticize once for improper conduct as governor, for the improper taking of funds, for payoffs, for improprieties in the governor's mansion. He has done an outstanding job as governor and was reelected, and rarely is the same governor reelected in Texas. I think he is clearly the better of the two men.''

Memo to W.: Don't take the weekend off!

Observation Points:
"I remember, and many of you remember, another governor of a big state that the Democrats said wasn't experienced enough -- Ronald Reagan." --Senator John McCain on the last-ditch effort to portray Mr. Bush as "lacking experience." **We view "lacking experience" as an asset! ++ Now, altogether class: "Does anyone, Republican or DemocRAT, seriously believe that under Mr. Gore, the next four years would be any different from the last eight?" --Dick Cheney ++ "It's interesting, too, that Democrats say the same thing of Bush they said of Ronald Reagan -- that he's not a detail guy and works short hours. News flash. A detail guy is the last thing you want as a president, and long hours equals inefficient. We're electing a decision-maker not a clerk." --Charley Reese ++ "George W. Bush has to throw himself on the mercy of the court of public opinion. He has to stop being offended and wary of the press. He has to stop being the ghost of Bob Dole and get out there. The governor has a great personality, a decent record in Texas, and some good ideas about how the federal government should be run. That's enough to win the election, if he campaigns as a real person because Al Gore has trouble doing that." --Bill O'Reilly ++ "The nearest thing there is to an objective check on the validity of opinion surveys comes once every four years with the final polls before a presidential election." --Martin Plissner ++ "You may choose not to vote on November 7 because you are repelled by the political process and what it produces. ... Well, that's your privilege.... But if you're a gun owner, and you wake up on November 8 and see that Al Gore is our new president, there is one thing you should do: Open up your gun cabinet and gaze at your firearms for a good long while -- so you'll remember what they looked like." --Field & Stream Executive Editor David E. Petzall

From Amerika2000 -- The Demo-lition...

Final "divide and conquer" sound-bites from the Gore campaign trail:

"Sincerely, it would be nice if we could get four more years from you. It's been a good eight years for us. [But] you can get the next best thing [by electing Gore]." --Bill Clinton

"The American people face a big choice next week, between two very different paths for our future, with so much at stake -- prosperity itself is on the ballot. I want to take this nation forward, to extend our prosperity and make sure it is shared by all -- not just the few. If we make the right choices, all families can do better. I am optimistic about how much we can change this country and make it better -- if we make the right choices." --Gore on the Left Coast. "Right choices"? {} "You have the ability to make the difference. This state has the ability to decide this close election. This community has the ability to decide what this state decides." --Gore from the pulpit of a black congregation church. ++ "I am pleading with you. Talk to your friends, talk to your neighbors, talk to your family members, talk to your co-workers -- and make sure nobody takes a pass on November 7th." --Clinton from the pulpit of a black congregation church, whose minister then prayed for the Clintons, whom he said have been subject to "a fierce onslaught of hostile forces for eight long years. ... [God] touch the electoral process...and anoint the polling places." ++ A Federalist reader notes, "It occurs to me that about 10% of blacks were freemen in 19th century America until Republican Abraham Lincoln raised that to 100%. Curiously, in the 21st century, about 90% of blacks align themselves with Democrats. Before, the 'antebellum' Democrats owned slaves for their labor, while today's 'ante-up' Democrats own them for their vote." {} "I favor legally recognized civic unions that have the legal protection of the kind that marriage confers." --Gore to homosexual constituents. {} "The vice president supported everything I did for this community. I hope, for what it's worth, 100% of your community will know that on Election Day." --Clinton to homosexual constituents. {} "If you want to know what happens when people don't turn out, all you need to do is look at Newt Gingrich, Trent Lott, Dick Armey, Tom DeLay -- because this is the crowd that gets elected when working people don't show up. This is the right-wing crowd that does get elected. If you're a student of history, as I am, you study history. The fact of the matter is, we've always battled the right wing. There's always been a fascist kind of crowd in every society...." --Patrick Kennedy on "fascist crowds." **Young Patrick apparently forgot part of his family history -- that of Grandpa Joe, the patriarch -- who was soft on the Nazis.

While Democrats applauded the right of Pat Buchanan to undermine George Bush's supports, they are vigorously attacking Ralph Nader, who responds, "Only Al Gore can beat Al Gore. And he's been doing a pretty good job of that."

"You wake up on Nov. 8.... It's cold and gray outside; it's drizzling rain mixed with sleet. You stumble to the door and pick up your newspaper. It's all wet, but you can just make out the front page. It says: 'Bush-Cheney win'." --Gore warning Naderites they'd better vote for him. ++ "[Nader's third party candidacy] is a very real danger to the Gore campaign. ... The country deserves a clear up-or-down vote between Mr. Bush and Mr. Gore, who have waged a hard, substantive, and clean campaign. ... [Nader] calls his wrecking-ball candidacy a matter of principle, but it looks form here like ego run amok." --New York Times **The Times, in its concern for a "clear up-or-down vote between Mr. Bush and Mr. Gore," did not complain about the threat Mr. Buchanan poses to Mr. Bush's campaign. Back in 1992, there was no such concern about Ross Perot prohibiting a clear up-or-down vote between President Bush and Mr. Clinton. After all, Clinton did not receive in 1992 -- or 1996 -- more than 50% of presidential votes cast. ++ "The New York Times reports that Gore supporters are 'mounting aggressive campaigns in swing states' against Gore's opponent -- no, not Bush but Ralph Nader. Nader is delighted: 'Their policy for six months has been to ignore me,' he tells the Times. 'So obviously we welcome this enhanced attention.' Gore himself promises not to go negative, telling a Seattle TV station: 'I don't want to use the argument that a vote for him is a vote for Bush.' In the next breath, he says the argument he's just disavowed 'may be true.' Gore may have set a new speed record in political flip-flopping." --Wall Street Journal ++ "The arguments for Nader's campaign are dubious, a vote for him reckless and the consequences of building him up severe and possibly irreversible." --Todd Gitlin, a professor of journalism at New York University

Observation Points:
"[Al Gore's] an imposter. If he were a corporation, he'd be prosecuted by the Federal Trade Commission for deceptive practices." --Ralph Nader ++ "Whenever I hear a campaign talk about a need to energize the base, that's a campaign that's going down the toilet. It's a pretty good indication that they're not eating up any territory, they can't get anybody in the center to support them, they're getting shelled back into their own bunker." --Demo strategist James Carville on the Gore campaign. ++ "Traditionally, a campaign that turns as sharply negative as Gore's has in the final push is a campaign that believes it is losing." --The New York Post ++ "Americans may be impressed with Mr. Gore's eloquence, but they just don't believe a word of what he says. Nor should they." --Washington Times ++ "Not long ago, it could be agreed that politics was the business of who gets what, when, where, how. It is now more than that. It has become a process that also deliberately seeks to effect such outcomes as who thinks what, who acts when, who lives where, who feels how." --Daniel Patrick Moynihan ++ "Another Gore Whopper: In one of the most preposterous claims of the political season, Vice-President Al Gore this week declared himself the candidate of smaller government and pledged not to add a single worker to the federal payroll if elected president." --Detroit News ++ "This is the way addled liberals really think. Even as they champion sucking the brains out of little babies, they think of themselves as indelibly compassionate because they favor an overweening, behemoth federal government." --Ann Coulter ++ "I need my civil liberties friends to tell me again the mortal danger of prayer -- of religion generally -- in public places. I keep forgetting it." --William Raspberry ++ "Gore's candidacy is simply too liberal for the country. After a career of extreme moderation, Gore chose the most important campaign of his life to run as Ted Kennedy. ... Gore's new-found leftism is almost perfectly designed to scare the independent voters he so badly needs. ... Earth to Gore: The left is dead as a governing coalition. It lives on in the twitching carcass of its own institutional structures -- teachers' unions, feminists activists, gay victimologists, black churches, faculty clubs -- but it has no overarching, popular argument to win power. ... Either Gore's ego was too big or his advisers were too left-wing to adopt the Clintonian game plan." --Andrew Sullivan in the New Republic ++ "The real cynics here are Lieberman's fellow Democrats who scream from the rooftops when Republicans invoke religion the way their candidate does now, but who have adopted a gleeful silence as their man wipes out the single greatest threat to their recapture of the presidency." --Charles Krauthammer

In other political news...

From HILLARY!, The Village Matriarch: When asked to name something she likes about opponent Rick Lazio, HILLARY! said, "He's an attractive young man." Watch your six, Rick!

Observation points:
"Both Hillary Clinton and Al Gore are very smart. They've been on the political scene in one way or another for a long time. But unlike their mentor Bill, they don't look like they enjoy the calculated life. Politics is what they must endure to get power. The president, by comparison, is a natural dissimulator -- a natural politician, a natural womanizer, a natural liar, and a natural fun-lover. He's inside his skin like a method actor, no matter what the script. Hillary and Al are stuck with delivering flat lines in a script that doesn't play to their strengths. They sound synthetic, unable to fake sincerity. If we could reduce to one word what Americans are looking for in this election season, it would be authenticity, the yearning that what we see is the real McCoy." --Suzanne Fields ++ "The politics of personal destruction, the character assassinations, the intimidation and political persecutions unleashed from the White House against those who exercised constitutional rights, and the unprecedented degrading and ridiculing of women have left a trail of lies and deceit inseparable from her campaign." --Marie-Jose Ragab, president of the NOW's Dulles Chapter, on Ms. Rodham-Clinton.

______--------********O********--------______
DEZINFORMATSIA

This week's "Media Busters" Award: "Perceived mandates for liberalism are trumpeted. Perceived mandates for conservatism are buried in denunciations of unfair campaigning. For too many in the national press, the ends continue to justify the means." --Brent Bozell {} Just in case you thought the media did not have an impact on public opinion, Frank Newport, Gallup's executive editor, was asked why there is so much "volatility" in the polls. He responded, "They bounce around depending on the last thing they heard on the news." {} "How can the voters be sure, that if he's elected President, that George Bush would in fact be in charge and that you wouldn't be, if you will, sort of the hidden hand President?" --CBS's Dan Rather to Dick Cheney {} "Rock the Vote, a nonpartisan, non-profit voter registration organization with close ties to Democrats...." --New York Times reporter Eric Schmitt on the meaning of nonpartisan. {} "You talk about Gore's little white lies while Governor Bush gets away with 'the big lies' -- the missing trillion in Social Security...." --Newsweek's Eleanor Clift, propagating one of Gore's whoppers. {} "We missed the death of a notable American this week...Gus Hall...head of the U.S. Communist Party.... [H]e was a dignitory[sic], dignitary in the Soviet Union. Even after his friends there abandoned the cause, Hall never wavered...." --ABC's Peter Jennings

______--------********O********--------______
VILLAGE IDIOTS

Gore mega-Demo-donor and consummate Village Celeb Barbra Streisand will be interviewed by Barbara Walters on ABC's 20-20 Friday night. The New York Post's Neal Travis reports, "I understand that, as a quid pro quo for doing the interview at a time when she has nothing personal to promote, Streisand insisted that she would be given room to explain why she is supporting Al and Hillary." In the uncut version of the interview, Streisand says, "There is so much at stake! The first three reasons to vote for Al Gore are: The Supreme Court.... The Supreme Court.... The Supreme Court! Our whole way of life is at stake when you consider that the next President will make three or even four appointments during his term. I shudder when I think of how a more conservative court could put at risk all the things we hold dear: our civil rights, women's rights, disability rights, privacy rights, consumer rights, workers' rights and reproductive rights. I, for one, don't want to return to the days before Roe vs Wade, when women had no control over their own bodies! Let's face it, this is a war against bigotry, against discrimination of any kind, racial, religious or sexual orientation. We need justices who will insure our rights and not turn the clock back on decades of social progress." {} Gore has solicited the help of numerous "entertainers" to spur turnout at his campaign stops. "I am here to lend my support to the voice of experience," proclaimed Jon Bon Jovi. "I wish Bon Jovi was running for president. Unfortunately, it is Gore," said a spectator at one of the rallies. "The voting machine is better than the slot machine -- you don't lose when you pull [for Gore]." --Bill Cosby "I don't know that I even like Joe Lieberman.... I just don't get a good feeling." --Cher "[Electing Bush] is a frightening and dangerous idea." --Marlo Thomas

______--------********O********--------______
SHORT CUTS

"Clinton Goes to Bat for Turkey" --Wall Street Journal lead editorial. **No -- not Gore -- but the country across the Aegean from Greece. ++ "Al Gore's Soul" --E-Bay auction item No. 479162197 **No bids! ++ "Debate: De part of de campaign dat got hooks in it." --Johnny Hart in the comic strip B.C. ++ "When asked who would you least like to sit next to on an airline flight, [the answer was] Al Gore. It wasn't all bad news for Gore. He finished just ahead of sitting in front...of a fidgety 3-year-old with a cough." --Kenny Noble Cortes ++ "Remember, America: I gave you the Internet, and I can take it away." --Al Gore joking with David Letterman -- we think? ++ Member Comment: "Congressman, I served with Bravehearts. I know Bravehearts. Bravehearts are friends of mine. Congressman, you're no Braveheart!" --A highly decorated patriot's response to House Democrite Leader Richard Gephardt, who attempted to rally his caucus last week by dressing as 13th century Scottish hero Sir William Wallace. **Perhaps Gephardt should try "Tinkerbell"!

Night Lines:

Leno.... You think if you get elected, Gore will try to take credit for it? (to George Bush) .... Hey, you really want to scare Al Gore this Halloween? Dress up as Ralph Nader. If you really want to scare Gore, put on a Clinton mask and run around and tell people what good friends you and Gore are. .... Lots of kids dressed up as Gore or Bush for Halloween. More kids dressed up like Bush! Not for political reasons, but because to dress like Gore you have stick on so much makeup! .... Gore is out on the campaign trail asking people if they are better off than what they were eight years ago. Bill Clinton is saying, "No, I'm still married!" .... A big shift in the Democratic Party today. They changed their view on the death penalty. They want to kill Ralph Nader. .... The polls show Bush pulling ahead now. The margin of error in these polls is plus or minus one Ralph Nader. .... George W. Bush came out against gay marriage. And Al Gore is a little more liberal. Gore said he thought that there should be some sort of civic union between gay people; a union where two people could be together in the eyes of the law -- even though it's not really a marriage.... Kind of like what the Clintons have right now. .... Bill Clinton is getting worried that Gore might lose the election. See, he's worried because he made a deal with Al...if Al wins, Clinton can still use the study room in the White House. .... Happy Birthday to Hillary Rodham Clinton! She turned fifty-three! At the party Bill Clinton and Robert De Niro both were on stage, two of America's best actors! .... According to a survey by Marie Claire magazine, 62% of women say they'd rather kiss Al Gore than George W. Bush. Well, sure. See, after women kiss Al Gore, you can sit down and discuss makeup tips with him.

Letterman.... Bill Clinton doesn't understand why he can't campaign side-by-side with Al Gore. Gee, maybe it's because you were IMPEACHED!! .... Tonight we are selling all of our old Late Show Clinton jokes! It's a clearance. Clearing the place out, everything must go! We have over 7,500 Clinton jokes to get rid of, and they all end with the word intern! .... Hillary Clinton is very confident about her race with Rick Lazio. She is so confident that she no longer pretends to like New York. .... Two hundred years ago today the first cornerstone was laid for the White House. You make your own Clinton joke!

Hamilton.... George W. Bush performed the Top 10 List on David Letterman.... He wanted to reassure supporters that if he is given the power to launch nuclear missiles, he can count backward from 10. .... George W. Bush got his syntax tangled up during a speech in Iowa. He declared that America is a place where wings can take dreams. Let's hope he doesn't have to read the nuclear attack codes out loud.

And a final note on E-Day, The Federalist intercepted this message yesterday from the Democrite National Committee....

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

URGENT MEMO: TO ALL DEMOCRITE STATE HEADQUARTERS AND STAFF!!!
FROM: Action Center -- http://www.democrites.org/StupidConstituents.html [link defunct]
RE: NEC ANNOUNCES SPECIAL ELECTION DAY FOR DEMOCRATS

At 1:00 pm on Thursday, November 2, 2000, the National Election Commission advised the Democrite National Committee they will split the voter balloting by political party over two days. Due to anticipated heavy voter turnout expected for next week's election, and the need to avoid unnecessary confrontations or armed altercations, Tuesday, November 7th, will be reserved exclusively for those rich, racist, homophobic, gun-totin' Republicans. Wednesday, November 8th, will be reserved exclusively for us "people against the powerful," choice-lovin' Democrites.

Please make this information available to all lead representatives of union halls and African-American churches in your district, and have them advise their members or congregations that they must notify all friends and family immediately. Further, please notify all the local chapter directors in your region for Handgun Control, Inc., AARP, Gays for Gore, NAACP, National Education Association, National Abortion Rights League, College Democrats of America, Planned Parenthood, NOW, and Women's Leadership Forum.

Please remind our comrades that they must present proper identification and/or voter registration cards to vote on Wednesday, November 8th. Remember, exercise your rights as a Democrite and vote on our designated day -- Wednesday, November 8th.

(Copy and paste this message to everyone you know and make sure none of our fellow Democrites are "left behind" by those right-wing Republicans. Get out the vote on Wednesday, November 8th.)

(**) Denotes Comment from Braveheart

Visit the most comprehensive tribute to Ronald Reagan on the Internet and read a conservative platform for the next century -- http://www.Reagan2000.com/

"But select capable men from all the people -- men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain -- and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens." (Exodus 18:21) ++ "In general the art of government consists in taking as much money as possible from one class of citizens to give to the other." --Voltaire ++ "Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports." --George Washington ++ "Our constitution was made only for a moral and religious people." --John Adams ++ "Resistance to tyrants is obedience to God." --Thomas Jefferson ++ "Patriotism means to stand by the country. It does not mean to stand by the president...." --Theodore Roosevelt ++ "Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice, moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue." --Barry Goldwater ++ "The time has come to turn to God and reassert our trust in Him..." --Ronald Reagan

"The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people." --9th Amendment to the United States Constitution. "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people." --10th Amendment to the United States Constitution. "Fruit from the Tree of Liberty" The Federalist is protected speech pursuant to the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America.


From: Braveheart

* Veritas Vos Liberabit *
Date: 31 October 2000

______--------********O********--------______
THIS WEEK'S FEATURED SITE

Al Gore represents a modern Malthusian -- he is only pessimistic about our future, and he can't imagine that a future without him in control will be anything less than a crisis -- as he elaborates in his book, "Earth in the Balance." We believe otherwise! Earth and the Unbalanced is a Web site dedicated to debunking Al Gore's environmental platform from a free-market environmental perspective.

Visit -- http://www.earthinthebalance.org/all_quotes.php

CONTENTS:
The Founders
Insight
Good News
ICTUS Imprimis
Faith & Family
Culture
Liberty
Opinion in Brief
Editorial Exegesis
The Gipper
Government
Political Futures
For the Record
Policy Pages
The Last Word

______--------********O********--------______
THE FOUNDERS

"The time is now near at hand which must probably determine whether Americans are to be free men or slaves, whether they are to have any property they can call their own, whether their houses and farms are to be pillaged and destroyed and themselves confined to a state of wretchedness from which no human efforts will deliver them. The fate of unborn millions will now depend, under God, on the courage of this army. Our cruel and unrelenting enemy leaves us only the choice of brave resistance or the most abject submission. We have, therefore, to resolve to conquer or die." --General George Washington in an address to the Continental Army

______--------********O********--------______
INSIGHT

"...Acting always within the authority and limitations of the Constitution, invading neither the rights of the States nor the reserved rights of the people, it will be the purpose of my Administration to maintain the authority of the nation in all places within its jurisdiction; to enforce obedience to all the laws of the Union in the interests of the people; to demand rigid economy in all the expenditures of the Government, and to require the honest and faithful service of all executive officers, remembering that the offices were created, not for the benefit of incumbents or their supporters, but for the service of the Government." --James Garfield

______--------********O********--------______
GOOD NEWS

"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving." (Colossians 3:23-24)

"For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things." (Philippians 3: 18-19)

"A people without understanding shall come to ruin." (Hosea 4:14)

______--------********O********--------______
ICTUS IMPRIMIS

"If a man fights his way through his doubts to the conviction that Jesus Christ is Lord, he has attained to a certainty that the man who unthinkingly accepts things can never reach." --William Barclay

______--------********O********--------______
FAITH & FAMILY

"The liberal understanding of 'the separation of church and state' means that as the area of politics expands, the area of private freedom -- religious and otherwise -- shrinks." --Joseph Sobran

"There was a time in this land when family was more important than government, when children honored their parents and when their parents grew old they helped where they could. Sometimes this meant money. Sometimes it meant a place to live. Sometimes it meant just being there to do for their parents what they could no longer do for themselves. Not any more. Today parents and children alike turn their responsibilities over to the federal nanny that extorts taxes from the haves so the haves can avoid their responsibilities to their families and communities." --Lyn Nofziger

______--------********O********--------______
CULTURE

"...[O]ur culture has moved beyond hypocrisy. Hypocrisy is the tribute that vice renders to virtue, but if there's no vice or virtue, and no absolutes, then how can there be hypocrisy? And that seems to be the reasoning. The candidates are able to do this without fear. Deconstruction and postmodernism have led to the point where there is no truth and no principles worth defending. Americans can hold two utterly conflicting thoughts in our mind at the same time with no tension whatsoever. We have repealed the law of non-contradiction." --Charles Colson

______--------********O********--------______
LIBERTY

"Without a doubt, the only thing standing between tyranny and us is the widespread possession of privately owned firearms. If the American people want to retain their liberties, they will fight to the death for the right to keep and bear arms. If they have any hopes that their children will grow up in a land of freedom, they will fight to the death for the right to keep and bear arms. If they expect the Clintons of tomorrow to submit to their role as servant of the people and not to become their masters, they will fight to the death for the right to keep and bear arms." --Chuck Baldwin

______--------********O********--------______
OPINION IN BRIEF

"Thinking that mankind's activities can have significant effects on the environment is the height of arrogance. If you really believe mankind's activity can change the Earth's temperature, you probably also think that if all of us jumped up and down we'd change the earth's orbit, or if we all got out our paddles we could change the direction of the tides." --Walter Williams

"As Henny Youngman would say, take campaign finance reform, please... Republicans have no choice but to outspend the Democrats, because Democrats get a lot of their message out through the media, free of charge, simply because the people in the media believe so much of that message themselves. Restricting spending does not mean a public better informed about both sides of issues. It means a public far less likely to hear both sides of issues. The media love campaign finance reform -- and they love Sen. John McCain, who has become their favorite Republican by pushing this liberal nostrum in Congress and on the campaign trail. But is throwing your party to the wolves, in order to boost your own candidacy, a high principle?" --Thomas Sowell

______--------********O********--------______
EDITORIAL EXEGESIS

"Joseph Lieberman's reputation for integrity was expected to help deflect the character question from the Democratic ticket. With Joe Lieberman, it was thought when he was picked, Al Gore would get a running mate closely identified with the president's policies who was also an outspoken critic of Mr. Clinton's ethical lapses. ... Sen. Lieberman's earliest champions have had to swallow deeply as they watched him waffle on tort reform, affirmative action, school vouchers, Hollywood and Social Security privatization -- issues on which he had shown a refreshing willingness to stand up for what he believes. But nowhere is the change more apparent -- and dismaying -- than in Mr. Lieberman's pandering to the Nation of Islam leader, Minister Louis Farrakhan. Mr. Lieberman has put his reputation for principled behavior at serious risk by becoming the first candidate of any major party presidential ticket to express a desire to meet with Mr. Farrakhan, a man who openly scapegoats Jews and espouses bigotry of the worst kind. Was it an attack of amnesia -- or cowardice -- or a morally backward desire to ingratiate himself with followers of Louis Farrakhan that made Joe Lieberman embrace the leader of the Nation of Islam? Whatever the explanation, it was pitiful to watch. Sen. Lieberman said, with no credible evidence, that Mr. Farrakhan 'wants to change.... He wants to be more constructive.' The only change we've seen is in Sen. Lieberman. And it's been for the worse." --Washington Post **Just one heartbeat from "President Gore."

______--------********O********--------______
THE GIPPER

"Ours was the first revolution in the history of mankind that truly reversed the course of government, and with three little words: 'We the people.' 'We the people' tell the government what to do, it doesn't tell us. 'We the people' are the driver, the government is the car. And we decide where it should go, and by what route, and how fast. Almost all the world's constitutions are documents in which governments tell the people what their privileges are. Our Constitution is a document in which 'We the people' tell the government what it is allowed to do. 'We the people' are free. This belief has been the underlying basis for everything I've tried to do these past eight years." --Ronald Reagan

______--------********O********--------______
GOVERNMENT

"In Washington, 'do-nothingism' is defined as refusing to pass the Democratic legislative wish list. ...A strong case can be made that the greatest virtue of the Republican Congress over the past six years has been its judicious inaction on Bill Clinton's most economically destructive ideas -- notwithstanding the unsightly election-eve spending spree that funded many of Bill Clinton's budgetary priorities." -Stephen Moore

______--------********O********--------______
POLITICAL FUTURES

"Ah, but October is nothing short of grand. Crisp mornings, warm afternoons, cool evenings. What could be more invigorating than the wake-up call of the early morning air in this vintage month? ...It's as if nature, clinging tenaciously to life, determines to go out with a blaze of glory -- a splendid doom. October is a metaphor for dying civilization, resplendent in its dotage. America today is October country: brilliant hues, dazzling scenes, frantic activity masking decay, like the bright colors of a life pile mingling with the musty odor of dissolution. At October's close comes Halloween, haunted eve when the world is given over to nightmare creatures. Ghosts, goblins and ghouls caper about, daring us to refuse them a treat. Our own monsters, all too real -- sexual savages gnawing at the nation's moral innards, nihilists masquerading as artists, armies of angry mendicants, posturing politicians only too willing to sell us into slavery for a bag full of votes -- will dance on the rubble of civilization. Here are demons, intent on soaping society's windows, who won't be appeased by chocolate bars or candy corn. Still, like the seasons, civilizations come and go. The passing of one gives nourishment to the next. After October, the world slides into a wintry grave, to await rebirth in the spring. After this life, life eternal beckons us. October is a wistful time. Soon, the rains will come; the wind will bite; the snow will fly. But that knowledge, far from depressing, only enhances our urgent pleasure in the rich spectacle." --Don Feder

______--------********O********--------______
FOR THE RECORD

"Last year, some 54 federal departments and agencies and more than 130,000 federal employees spent over $18.7 billion writing and enforcing federal regulations. During the Clinton/Gore administration, the number of full-time positions in regulatory agencies reached an all-time high. The era of big government is not over. According to renowned economist Thomas Hopkins, federal regulations were estimated to cost the American people $721 billion this year, which is equal to about 40 percent of all federal spending -- representing a hidden tax of more than $6,800 per year for each American family. This figure only represents direct compliance costs, not indirect costs such as the cost of lost productivity, the increased cost of goods and services (as we are seeing with gas prices right now), and lower wages. ...In fact, the average number of pages of regulations in the Federal Register is sky-rocketing. Currently, the Clinton-Gore administration is placing an average of 210 pages of regulations per day in the Federal Register. The last time there was such a flood of regulations was at the end of the Carter administration -- when the Federal Register had an average of 200 pages of regulations per day. In addition, the Clinton-Gore administration is attempting to bypass the safeguards of the Administrative Procedure Act which require federal agencies to provide opportunities for informed and meaningful public participation as part of the regulatory rulemaking process. It is doing so by making liberal use of interim final rules, guidance documents, and policy statements that do not require public comment and are not subject to review by the courts. ...This is irresponsible and wrong. It is another egregious abuse of power in the long list of abuses that constitute the real legacy of the Clinton-Gore years." --Sen. James M. Inhofe

______--------********O********--------______

The Social Hygiene of Gun Control
CLAREMONT INSTITUTE
http://www.claremont.org/publications/wheeler000317.cfm

What Taxpayers Should Ask About COPS
Dexter Ingram
http://www.heritage.org/library/execmemo/em701.html

Education and "Revolutionary Improvements"
Nina Shokraii Rees
http://www.heritage.org/views/2000/ed101800.html

______--------********O********--------______
THE LAST WORD

10 commandments of PC

1. Uplift the poor, except the poorest, the unborn.
2. Do not oppress, except people who get in my way.
3. Freedom of speech is the right to celebrate transgressions of traditional morality and religion, but not to defend them.
4. Lying is despicable in others but "the appealing representation of partial truths" when I do it.
5. Might is right, so long as it is my might.
6. Fascists are right-wing, not left-wing, and anyone who says otherwise should be fired or killed.
7. Because I have been mistreated in the past, I can mistreat you now with impunity.
8. "Conservative" is a swear-word and implies stupidity.
9. Logic can be used to critique conservatives, but the identification of my inconsistencies shows a bias toward "Western" thought patterns.
10. Anyone who disagrees with me is a bigot, and I don't have to hear them out to know that.
(Received without attribution.)

______--------********O********--------______
NOTE

As we mentioned last week, our analysts predict that those terrorists -- or some ostensible facsimile thereof -- who are suspected of assisting in the attack on the USS Cole, will suffer retaliation from the air on or before Saturday, 04 November -- in time for the gaggle of Algorista spinmeisters to appear on the weekend talkinghead networks heralding the bombing as "real leadership" in the region.

Memo to Al and Joe: Only four days left....

(T-7 days until E-day 2000. T-81 days until eviction of the Clintonistas -- and delousing!)

This Week's Clintoons:
http://www.washtimes.com/op-ed/garner.htm [cartoon not visible]
http://www.cnsnews.com/cartoon/welcome.asp

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So what do I believe in? Libertarianism. I'm voting for Ralph Nader because he's gonna get more votes than Libertarian candidate Harry Browne and I want to help make the biggest-possible third-party ripple. Since I don't care which one of the bi-partisan assh***s wins (because they both suck), it doesn't matter to me if I take votes from one and give them to the other. But ya know, when I was sixteen (sixteen years ago) I dated this guy, Gary. He proclaimed his Self to Be an anarchist, but believed that the closest we would ever get was socialism. He explained to me in great detail how socialism worked, why it would work far better than communism ever could, and how the United States, though it was founded as a democratic republic, was moving inexorably toward a socialist state. He was an Aquarius, deeply concerned for the state of the world and the welfare of all people, which, while it was a wonder-full way to Be in and of it's Self, didn't work well for my Leo Self as his girlfriend, because I thought I ought to Be his primary concern... Wasn't gonna happen. :-> But other than that my relationship with Gary was the second best in which I've ever Been. :-> 'Course, all that's beside the point. I wasn't near as concerned with the state of the world at sixteen as he was, so it didn't occur to me how right he was until several years later. I mean, it didn't sink in. I'd all-ways figured he was probably right, but never really thought much of it, ya know? It's funny, 'cause we came here, travelled all that way across the sea, dumped the tea, fought the Revolutionary War, all to get away from the British system of rule, and here we are 224 years later pretty much emulating it, though we continue to vehemently deny it...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Gotta go to sleep... [?] tomorrow. See ya! :->

Comments