Thank you DVR.

I watched part one last night. Sunday was reserved for watching the Giants blow their first game to the Colts and Monday was my wedding anniversary, so I'm just now getting to it.

First point: The film is well made. The pacing is not too slow or too fast. The editing and cinematography keep you riveted. The use of hand-held cameras gives it an air of authenticity.

Second point: The portrayal of Richard Clarke is very positive (so far). He's actually one of the few higher up White House types that take this threat seriously. Why is Clarke so upset about this film? Doesn't make sense. Maybe he objects to being played by Milton, the red stapler guy from Office Space?

Third point: No, Sandy Burglar and Maddy Albright are not presented in a favorable light but neither is George Tenet or anyone else at a level of significant responsibility. Their words and actions (or lack thereof) are not so much indicative of individual character flaws as they are of a particular mindset that our government had at the time.

The film is more of an examination of what happens when you treat counter-terrorism as a "Law and Order" episode. We did this from Nixon to Bush 43, until 9/11/01. At that point, the current President and his cabinet realized that this is really a war - one like we've never fought before - that requires treating it like one.

It also provides a better understanding of the vastness of the terror network and how hard so many people have worked to track it down. The people in the CIA, FBI and other agencies who get their hands dirty understood the threat. It's the politicians and the bureaucrats who didn't. The agents didn't fail us, their bosses did. I'm amazed at what they were able to accomplish even in that restrictive environment.

If we give these folks the tools that they need and support what they do, we will defeat the terrorists almost every time. As Harvey Keitel's John O'Neill says "Nobody bats 1.000." But we need to recognize what we're dealing with and accept what we need to do to fight it.

If our government holds true to a "post-9/11" perspective we have a chance. To go back to a "pre-9/11" mentality would be suicide. And the problem with Democrats is that they desperately cling to a "pre-9/11" mentality. They prefer treating terrorists as criminals with Constitutional rights. They'd rather have court victories than military victories. They think negotiation is a viable tool in dealing with these animals. We can never go back to that old mindset.

And this reason above all others - the reminder that this approach is what doomed us to failure - is why Democrats should be most worried about this film, not the affect it will have on individual legacies and reputations.

Only by accepting responsibility and demonstrating that lessons have been learned can Democrats ever hope to convince the American people that they can be trusted with their safety. By demanding that "The Path To 9/11" be pulled in an attempt to cover-up their shortcomings, they have done more damage to their credibility than any movie ever could.

Posted by: Gary at 11:10 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 552 words, total size 3 kb.

Solomonia takes a cyber-walk through the websites of the respective Senate candidates. His take:

I can't tell yet whether this new focus is going to be a load of fun or the source of the worst brain-freeze headache in the history of 7-11.

Posted by: Gary at 09:20 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 51 words, total size 1 kb.

Drudge is breaking information included in Robert Novak's upcoming column that finally sets the record straight about Richard Armitage. In short, the Novak asserts that the former Assistant Secretary of State is not telling the whole truth about his role in the Plame affair.

Novak, attempting to set the reocrd straight writes: "First, Armitage did not, as he now indicates, merely pass on something he had heard and that he 'thought' might be so. Rather, he identified to me the CIA division where Mrs. Wilson worked, and said flatly that she recommended the mission to Niger by her husband, former Amb. Joseph Wilson. Second, Armitage did not slip me this information as idle chitchat, as he now suggests. He made clear he considered it especially suited for my column."

Novak slams Armitage for holding back all this time.

UPDATE: 3:50PM
Novak's full column is up at the Chicago Sun-Times' website.

Posted by: Gary at 08:45 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 163 words, total size 1 kb.

Part Three is now online.

Posted by: Gary at 04:12 PM | Comments (4) | Add Comment
Post contains 11 words, total size 1 kb.

The same market forces that drove prices up are causing the decline.

No, it's not a Bush-Rove election surprise. The President doesn't deserve credit anymore than he deserves the blame for rising prices.

Too many people who are ignorant of economics fail to grasp this concept. Fortunately, however, the Democrats plan of using this as a club to beat the GOP over the head with is evaporating before their eyes.

Now there is plenty of blame to go around for the long-term situation, like squishy Liberals (in both parties) who manage to torpedo ANWR drilling bills every year. Imagine what prices would be today if we went in that direction ten years ago.

Posted by: Gary at 11:00 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
Post contains 127 words, total size 1 kb.

Last night, the President of the United States addressed the nation on this solemn anniversary of the attacks of 9/11.

He offered words of optimism, hope and encouragement. He spoke of the courage, strength and spirit that this country has always shown in times of crisis.

What the majority of Americans saw was an example of leadership.

What Democrats saw will no doubt inspire in them anger and rage. Based on their experiences within their own party, Democrats have a hard time recognizing leadership. While they are all very familiar with being roused, stirred-up and driven to indignation, they have very little experience in being led.

The President layed out his case for fighting this war against Islamic Fascism - on all of its fronts.

For the majority of Americans whose outlooks are based in reality, this case - whether they liked hearing it or not - makes sense.

For the Left, however, it was a challenge to their fantasy of a false peace rooted in isolationism and head-in-the-sand denial. And they will react as they typically do. Years from now, when their children are grown they will ask, "Mommy? Daddy? What did you do during the great ideological struggle of the twenty-first century?" And they can hold their heads up high, look them in the eyes and say "I posted thousands of childish, obscene comments on weblogs!"

How does that old saying go? If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem?

President Bush concluded his address to the nation with a call for unity.

Most Americans remember the kind of unity this country shared in the weeks following 9/11 and they long for it again. They recognize how important this is in a time of war.

Democrats will reject this call out of hand. After all, they are engaged in a different war - a political war to take back control of the Federal government. For them, a sense of unity offsets any political advantage they might hope to exploit. Democrats are calling this a "political speech". This should come as no surprise. Surely, to those who would make the war a political issue, it was.

Yes, we have two perspectives out there. Our enemies are hoping one of them will prevail. It's not all that hard to figure out which one.

Posted by: Gary at 09:00 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 395 words, total size 2 kb.

Hosted by AgentBedHead. Complete with Depeche Mode from the Twin Towers.

Posted by: Gary at 10:55 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 25 words, total size 1 kb.

For weeks before today, I had planned to put into words the sad state that the Democrat party is in as well as my own disgust at the way so many of them view our current war against Islamic Fascists. I thought perhaps today would have been an apt day to do so.

However, Confederate Yankee made a post today that expressed exactly what I was thinking but in a more eloquent manner than I ever could. Here I share a portion that really nails it.

"Five years later, American Democrats have more hate in their hearts for their own President than they do for the terrorists that killed almost 3,000 of their countrymen. They refuse to confront terrorism. Some would rather blame America and the world they think they understand, rather than face up to the fact that the world we all thought we knew was just an illusion. They are in catastrophic psychological denial, and cannot face the fact that "the other" they have spent their lives providing moral equivalence for were the ones who attacked our country.

It is so much easier to blame Bush than face the fact that we were attacked because we are the beacon of freedom for the world, and the greatest threat to radical Islam. It is so much easier to blame Bush, than realize that decades of denial led us to that horrific moment. If they can only blame Bush for that day—and every day since that their worldview has been shown to be vapid, self-serving, and a fraud—then their denial can go on, and "reality-based community" can continue to live in a world that has refuses to learn, to adapt, to change.

The Left refuses to learn from 9/11 and knows no way forward. It is why they grasp so insistently to the past, clinging to what was and what might have been, instead of moving forward to forcefully determine what should be and what must be done to secure our freedoms for the future. It is they that childishly insist for the "Perfect War" theory, stating a belief that any war not fought with perfect foresight and accuracy is wrong, while knowing securely no war has ever met their standard.

They show that they hate the present and don't understand the lessons of the recent past. They strive for stagnation and stasis and blaming ourselves, but they offer no hope for the future.

They blame Americans for radical Islamic plans for world domination. They vilify our troops instead of the terrorists they fight. They attack western governments fighting for freedom instead of eastern governments and the terrorists they sponsor that are fighting for oppression and destruction of our way of life.

The Left offers America and true liberalism a death sentence, seeking to repeat the failed policies of 30 years in denial.

We will not listen to them again.

That, perhaps, is their greatest fear of all."

Read the whole post here.

Posted by: Gary at 04:30 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
Post contains 508 words, total size 3 kb.

1 Thanks for sharing that link Gary. I went over to Confederate Yankee and read the whole thing. And it didn't take long for the "usual suspects" on the left to descend on CY's comment section and prove the point of the post. If these lefties had spent have the energy fighting terror as they do fighting those who are trying to win this war we would have won by now.

Posted by: Mike's America at September 12, 2006 12:25 AM (SHL+1)

2 A whole nation has a hard time staying angry over an attack that killed over 3,000 people yet these cretins manage to maintain the intensity of their rage towards a President and half the voting population who voted for him. These people have issues.

Posted by: Gary at September 12, 2006 09:09 AM (PLHs9)

3 Gary, It is called LCDD ( Liberal Cognitive Dissonance Disorder) - there is no known cure.

Posted by: Skye at September 12, 2006 08:17 PM (l9Zv4)

Hide Comments | Add Comment

Light posting today.

Has it been five years already? Sometimes it feels like it happened just yesterday, and other times it seems like it all took place during someone else's lifetime.

But we must remember. Remember those innocents who died and their loved ones who grieve. Remember those who fought back. Remember those who risk everything to keep us safe. Remember why we fight and why we must never give up that fight.

Take a few minutes and remember: here.

Be sure to check out Skye's 2996 memorial tribute one post down. The website for the 2996 Project is here.

God Bless.

Posted by: Gary at 07:00 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 108 words, total size 1 kb.

His wife Rosie recalls:

Marcello was a loving husband, father and son. He was Wall Street's biggest fan. I met Marcello when I was 17 years old and he was 19 in the Bear Stearns' mailroom department where we were both starting our careers. While others read magazines and junk that circulated around the mailroom, Marcello read the Wall Street Journal, NY Times and all of the latest financial information. He was fascinated by Wall Street and couldn't understand why others didn't share in his passion. I knew then that he would be successful on Wall Street. He was always the center of attention at family gatherings, sharing his knowledge of the markets. He became his family's own financial planner and he loved every minute of it. He will forever be remembered to all who knew him as ambitious and someone who stopped at nothing until he achieved his goal.

He enjoyed reading, music, soccer, cycling and, boy, did he love his Italian Food! Nothing but the best for him. He loved to read up on all of the best restaurants and best wines. He always made it his business to try the latest and the greatest places just so that he could say he tried it. He looked forward to his weekend rides in Central Park with his buddy Ed where he would work off all of the food he had eaten just days before.

Then there is Nicholas. Oh, how he loved his son! He lived his life for his son. He loved the best of everything and never gave his Nicholas or I any less. Nothing could make him happier than Nicholas could. I could not have asked for a better father for my son. Although Nicholas had you for only 4 years of his life, he will remember you for eternity. You made such an impact in his life. He misses you dearly!

My love, you were a devoted father and husband. You always managed to make me laugh with your silly and sometimes obnoxious comments. The way you dedicated your life to your family will never be forgotten. We were all very proud of you and I, too, hope to make you proud of me in the way I will continue to raise our son. You will forever be missed by your family and all who knew you. Life as I knew it will never be the same without you. You will forever be in our hearts. Goodbye My Love, until our paths cross again! Nicholas and I will LOVE YOU FOREVER!

Jason Kendall recalled the humor of Marcello

Marcello Matricciano was our company clown and stress-reliever. He was able to walk into a room, insult us all completely and make us laugh. His insults were right out of a South Park cartoon, and his friendship was as dear as his mouth was dirty. His bouyant character helped us all calm down in the bad economic days. And in the good days, he was a beacon of laughter and friendship. His wife and son, Nick, will sorely miss him.

His image can be found on a Memorial Quilt

Cantor Fitzgerald Family - 2996 Tribute Cantor Fitzgerald Directory

Posted by: Skye at 05:01 PM | Comments (19) | Add Comment
Post contains 779 words, total size 5 kb.

The NFL has been frothing at the mouth over this one: the Manning Bowl.

Win or lose it should be a pretty good game.

Nothing like the first day of football season. Go GIANTS!!

-----------------------------------------
UPDATE: 11:25pm
Colts 26
Giants 21

Aw, crap. Not to take anything away from the Colts. They're a playoff caliber team. But jeezus! Dropped picks. Missed field goal. Give the ball back right after an interception. Penalties left and right. Bogus offensive pass interference call.

The fact is that the Giants defense completely shut down the Indianapolis rush. They could have won this game if they had stayed focused and executed. They didn't.

If they do, then the Giants are a playoff caliber team. Let's hope this is an aberration. If they repeat this kind of performance again - with this schedule - they're in deep sh*t.

One other note on NBC's coverage. I hate the fact that they almost never show the play clock.

Posted by: Gary at 05:00 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 172 words, total size 1 kb.

Oh man, this is so good. Monty Python's "Holy Grail" with light sabers. Brought to you in Llama-vision!

Robbo, you made my day.

Posted by: Gary at 10:12 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
Post contains 35 words, total size 1 kb.

Here she is, gentlemen:

Welcome back, Diane. We missed ya. :wink:

Posted by: Gary at 08:00 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
Post contains 23 words, total size 1 kb.

Yeah, I know for the last month that question has been begging to be answered. I purposely said nothing specific about what I'd be doing on my break if for no other reason to make you wonder.

Well, it's really simple. As I've said, I've been doing this for over a year and a half straight. Those of you who keep a blog (and post frequently) understand that this is a long time in "blog years". So many sites die a slow death within the first six months while others ebb and flow with activity. I have more than a handful of blogs on my blogroll that stop posting for months without a word and then start up again out of nowhere, as if nothing happened.

I also understand that you're less likely to come back unless you can count on fresh material. I didn't want to get stagnant but I really...really...needed a break. So, considering I had planned a week-long vacation anyway and August is normally a slow news month I figured that if I was going to take a break then I'd make it count.

Click "Read More" to read entire post. more...

Posted by: Gary at 02:30 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 536 words, total size 3 kb.

"I wanted to have an In-N-Out Burger."
- Paris Hilton on her recent
DUI arrest.

OK, I'm not even going to touch that one.

Posted by: Gary at 01:48 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
Post contains 32 words, total size 1 kb.

1 She really is her own worst enemy...

Posted by: Skye at September 10, 2006 10:31 AM (MfeOa)

Hide Comments | Add Comment

All through 2005 (my first year of blogging) I had a regular item every Saturday morning called the "Diane Lane Photo of the Week" featuring a different picture of my favorite girl-next-door actress. It proved to be pretty popular.

A year ago, I switched over from Blogger to MuNu and had my archives migrated as well. Unfortunately, the graphics that I had posted up to the Blogger server often don't allow access from this site. Maybe they consider it "hotlinking" or something, I don't know for sure. All I know is that when you click on the "Diane Lane" category and scroll down, you usually get those annoying little boxes with the red "x" through it on pre-September 2005 entries and the link will give you a message to the effect that access is denied, and "The requested URL could not be retrieved".

Sigh.

So, because those older pics are not viewable (and also due to popular demand) I will be re-posting one of those old photos every Saturday through the end of the year. Actually, it's more like a "best of" presentation based on the ones I've chosen from my archives on the old Ex-Donkey Blog. And, honestly, I always considered those earlier photos to be the best ones anyway.

So those of you who missed that weekly treat can take heart. The first one goes up tomorrow morning! Stay tuned.

Posted by: Gary at 12:15 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 246 words, total size 2 kb.

Sixty days from now, I and millions of other Americans will go to the polls. We here in CT have a very high-profile Senate race.

I am an ex-Democrat and have been for at least eight years. As such, I (along with about two thirds of registered - and living - voters in CT) did not cast a ballot last month in the Democrat primary. Nor should I have been able to. I strongly disagree with the "open primary" concept.

But the results of that primary election (the rejection of Joe Lieberman by some 10,000 votes) do not reflect the "will of the voters" as Ned Lamont's supporters like to claim. They reflect the vote of registered Democrats (living and dead). Lieberman now runs as an independent. Last time I checked the U.S. Constitution I wasn't able to find any references to political parties.

Joe Lieberman has a right to run as an independent. And he will win or lose based on the will of ALL or CT's registered voters on November 7th. Ned Lamont's supporters should welcome this opportunity if they are so confident in their candidate.

Personally, I believe that Joe will prevail in sixty days. Polls indicate that his approval rating in excess of 60% will translate to a fourth term in the Senate. That being said, you can't take anything for granted in politics. The opposition is determined and relentless. They will do or say anything to win. Their efforts are fueled by organizations like MoveOn.org and the resources that pour into the State on Lamont's behalf come by and large from outside the State.

I could easily just hang back and watch with amusement as the Democrat party engages in intra-party bickering and tears itself to shreds. No matter what, Republicans will NOT pick up this seat. When your opponents fight amongst themselves, it's always best not to interfere.

But I live in CT and this race does mean something to me. I already have to live with the fact that I have one major asshat representing me in the U.S. Senate.

I disagree with Joe Lieberman on most of the votes he casts and almost all of the positions he supports. But I have always voted for Joe regardless of my party affiliation. And I support him this time around for two important reasons: his unyielding integrity and his ardent support for this country's efforts to fight the Islamofascist threat that we now face.

The stakes are just too high.

So I'm signing on as an unofficial - and vocal - supporter of Joe Lieberman for the U.S. Senate. I have absolutely no connection to Connecticut for Lieberman, Friends of Joe Lieberman or any other campaign organization associated with the Senator. But I will be doing whatever I can over the next sixty days to promote his candidacy.

On to victory, baby!

Posted by: Gary at 10:05 AM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
Post contains 484 words, total size 3 kb.

Government officials threaten and intimidate television broadcasters with tactics that would make Josef Stalin proud. But then there are plenty of ideological tenants shared by both Soviet Communists and Democrats. Obviously a big one is censorship. This is one of those times when the masks come off.

If they succeed, Liberals everywhere will chalk it up as a political victory. What will be totally lost on them however is the political damage they are inflicting on themselves by allowing voters to see just how petty, thuggish and hypocritical they really are.

I don't know about you but I feel a "chill wind" on the back of my neck when I look at these guys.

UPDATE: 12:20PM:
Sanctuary blog has a graphic that says it all.

Posted by: Gary at 09:06 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 131 words, total size 1 kb.

I'm in the process of revising and updating my original posts on Tolkien Geek as I re-read the books. So far I've gotten through both Book One and Book Two of "The Fellowship of the Ring".

Anyone interested in seeing the updates or reading through my commentary for the first time can go here.

Posted by: Gary at 08:40 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 60 words, total size 1 kb.

Lefties are all up in arms about Vets For Freedom. They're deriding them as the 2006 version of the Swift Boat Veterans who exposed John Kerry for the back-stabbing, lying creep that he was back in 2004.

Of course, as in the past, Democrats want to silence them. Why should they support the First Amendment rights of people who risked their lives to defend those very rights for them, anyway? Vets For Freedom's stated mission is "to support policymakers from both sides of the aisle who have stood behind our great generation of American warriors on the battlefield, and who have put long-term national security before short-term partisan political gain."

In other words, other than Joe Lieberman that would leave out just about every nationally-elected Democrat. No wonder the moonbats are pissed off.

The website for Vets For Truth is here. Thanks to our veterans all over the world who keep America free.

Posted by: Gary at 04:05 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
Post contains 161 words, total size 1 kb.