How ironic!

In the wake of the tomato/salmonella circle jerk, it seems our government still can't figure out where the contaminated food is coming from. First they needlessly shut down practically the entire north-American tomato industry, now, in the absence of any better ideas, they've decided to blame Mexico in general. Here's the headline today.....

Inspectors to halt import of some food from Mexico

So it is possible after all to stop the influx of undesirable things from Mexico....who knew? Liberals plus John McCain and President Bush tell is it isn't. Where's their idiotic reasoning that Mexican tomatoes are simply flavoring salsa that American tomatoes won't flavor?

So our government can close the border if it's politically expedient to do so. The only problem is that Mexican tomatoes aren't hurting anybody, yet they've been prevented from coming across. But Mexican people, who're sucking up taxpayer-funded benefits faster than Madonna beds pro ball players, dumbing down our schools, driving down wages, refusing to assimilate, and filling up our prisons, get a free pass across the border from the same government.

If these people were wearing tomato costumes, the border patrol might actually try to stop them.

Reader Mail

Reader Hamster brought up some good points in the comments thread of this post about guns last week.

Hamster, good points all. Let me address one or two of them...

The founding fathers knew what an oppressive government could do to individual freedom. It's in part why they left Great Britain. Even if you reject that the entire Bill of Rights describes individual rights, without individual gun ownership, the government can oppress the people whenever it wants. The framers recognized that a man's home, land, and body are sacred and without absolute ownership and protection from the government, he's not really a free man. Guns are not only an actual protection against government tyranny, they are symbolic as well.

Abortion, prohibition, homosexuality, suffrage, are all examples of choice-based population behavior. They are not examples of the aggressive interaction between individuals and their government. You suggested that we should let the people vote on every issue. What if a majority voted to not let women vote? We'd always have a republican President, that's for sure. That's the difference. Gun ownership plays a non-legislative, fundamental role in our lives, regardless of current popular culture trends. Those other things are just life-style choices. Besides, without guns, how would the colonies have thrown off the yolk of British tyranny?

In a less philosophical argument, by our Constitution, our police force can only be reactionary, not preventative. They cannot do anything to anybody who hasn't committed a crime. And that's a good thing. But for that reason alone, individuals must be able to protect themselves from the gun massacres you fear. There's not single mom from Virginia Tech who wouldn't give her own life if just one student or teacher had carried a weapon into class that day and killed that lunatic before he slaughtered 31 or whatever the body count was.

When the police force/government can absolutely guarantee that we are totally safe from gun violence and victimization no matter what, and that the government will never, never try to seize my property unlawfully, then we can discuss a reduction in gun ownership. Until then, don't even think about robbing my house or taking away my guns.

States rights are exactly what the Framers had in mind when they wrote the Constitution and all the limits on government it includes. The federal courts have usurped those rights until there is almost no such thing as states rights any more. Yes, let the people decide. Theoretically we already do...every time we vote. The problem with letting every state make up different laws for every issue is that essentially we'd have 50 little fiefdoms operating independently. There should be some consistency when it comes to many issues, but states should be able to alter the laws a little here and there. For instance: everybody can own a gun but the qualifications that must be met vary from state to state.

Lastly, we don't want democracy. Democracy is mob rule. You have democracy when two wolves and a sheep vote on what's for dinner. The form of government we have is a representative republic. At least that's how it's supposed to work. Our representatives write the laws as we direct them to, and the courts interpret them as to constitutionality. If we don't like the laws they write, we throw the bums out at the next election. The problems arise when the judges become activists and rule based on their personal politics rather than on strict constitutionality. Which brings us around to the differences between liberals and conservatives. Liberals see activist judges as a means to get their whacky, anti-American agenda into law, where conservatives think that regardless of whether the judge likes the law or not, the only question is, is it constitutional? That's why election and voting are so important. Republicans tend to nominate strict constitutionalists while democrats always nominate activist pinheads who legislate from their bench.

Anyway, I hope this clears up my positions on guns, the role of the judiciary, the Constitution, and individual rights.

Now, I have some ribs and baked beans to eat. Happy 4th TRR readers!

Coming to an e-bay auction near you

This is the big local story around Birmingham this week....

Internationally known visionary Marija Lunetti announced that the Virgin Mary has appeared to her, offered a blessing and promised to return at 10 p.m. Thursday in a field in Shelby County.

Lunetti has been staying in Shelby County at the home of Terry Colafrancesco, founder of Caritas of Birmingham, which promotes the visions that began in 1981 in Medjugorje in the former Yugoslavia.

The visions have since drawn millions of pilgrims to Lunetti's home village of Medjugorje. Lunetti says the Virgin Mary has appeared to her every day since 1981, sometimes offering messages.

About 2,000 pilgrims have converged on Shelby County this week, parking alongside Shelby County 43 near the Caritas headquarters, about seven miles off U.S. 280.

10p.m. huh? How does one go about booking the Virgin Mary for an appearance? And why 10p.m.? She must have an apparition booked in Sheboygan at like 8, a haunting in Glasgow at 6, and a grilled-cheese sandwich impression in Bakersfield at 4.

And why a cow pasture in Shelby county, 7 miles off 280? As the mother of Christ, Mary should know how difficult it is to drive on 280? I mean once we build a monorail out there, it'll be more convenient. Moreover, it's July in the deep South. There are mosquitos the size of small bats down here. I wonder how much in donations Marija rakes in as she travels around the country pretending to see Mary.

Seriously though, there is actually some historical precedence to the grilled cheese apparitions of the Virgin Mary. Recently a fresco by Sergio Bonometti was discovered from the 12th century, believed to have been lost for hundreds of years, and which I've featured below. It's the Virgin Mary sharing a grilled cheese sandwich with the Baby Jesus.

Semper Fi mofo's!

For all you anti-gun zealots out there who think people with guns are more likely to commit crimes, read this....

PLANTATION, Fla. -- A retired United States Marine disrupted a robbery in progress when he shot two men who attempted to rob a Subway sandwich shop, fatally wounding one of them, police said.

According to Plantation police, two armed men barged into the Subway at 1949 Pine Island Road shortly after 11 p.m. Wednesday, demanding money from the employee behind the counter.

When they tried to force John Lovell into the bathroom, he pulled out a gun and shot both men, police said.

Donicio Arrindell, 22, was shot in the head and later died at the hospital. Fredrick Gadson, 21, was shot in the chest and ran from the Subway, but police found him in hiding in some bushes on the property of a nearby BankAtlantic.

I absolutely delight in retired military guys sending would-be thugs off to their eternal dirt nap. Now, if anybody would like to object with this guy's right to carry his weapon, and use it, I would love, love to hear your argument.

With conceal/carry, everybody is safer....except the criminals.

Great Britain's idiotic hate-crime laws are nothing but self-parody at this point...

Jonathan Wicks, a white guy, was taken to court for calling some other white men ‘honky wannabe cops.

Questions and observations: Black leaders would have us believe that only minorities can be victims of race-based hate crimes. How can one white guy victimize another white guy by calling him a honkey?

Blacks routinely use the "It's-OK-when-we-use-the-N-word-on-each-other" defense, why can't Mr. Wicks use the same defense? In other words, why is it not a hate crime when blacks call each other the N-word?

The existence of hate crimes criminalizes thought. Read 1984 if you don't shudder when you hear that. Where in the Constitution is it written that the government can criminalize the thoughts of otherwise law-abiding citizens?

The cult of perpetual outrage

NewsFlash: Muslims upset....

The advert has upset Muslims because dogs are considered ritually unclean and has sparked such anger that some shopkeepers in Dundee have refused to display the advert.

‘We did not seek advice from the force’s diversity adviser prior to publishing and distributing the postcards. That was an oversight and we apologise for any offence caused.’

This is just getting to be ridiculous. Why does anybody take these morons seriously any more? Oh, I know....because they'll cut our throats, slaughter civilians, and burn our cities at the slightest provocation. And don't tell me these are only the radical Muslims being outraged. These are the Muslims we view as moderate and normal. When are you people going to get it....Islam is not, not one of the world's great religions. It is a perverse cult of third-world nomads hell-bent on controlling or killing anybody who doesn't bow to their ridiculous beliefs. What else would you expect from a group that collectively hates puppies?

It's Ann Coulter Thursday!

This week, Ann points out why it's going to be hard for most conservatives to vote for McCain in November. He's not really a conservative and the lesser of two evils is still evil. This snipit pretty much sums up conservatives' distaste for J.Mac....

John McCain opposed drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge because he polled soccer moms and found out they were against drilling. They thought it sounded too much like going to the dentist. McCain wanted to ensure that he remained beloved by the two pillars of his base: "centrists" and New York Times reporters.

Go to HumanEvents and read it now.

The afro-centric cult of Obama worship

Black seperatists keep coming out of the woodwork to show support for the "black candidate" Barack Obama, even as he tries to distance himself from racial themes....

A jazz singer shocked some Denver residents after replacing the words to the national anthem with those of the "Black National Anthem" during the annual State of the City address this week.

Rene Marie was asked to sing "The Star-Spangled Banner" before Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper delivered the annual address on Tuesday. Instead, she sang the lyrics of "Lift Every Voice and Sing" — a hymn commonly referred to as the "Black National Anthem" — to the tune of the national anthem.

Folks, this is the tip of the ice-berg in terms of what kind of administration we'll see with an Obama presidency. Here are the last three lines of the Black National Anthem....

May we forever stand,
True to our God,
True to our native land”

I wonder to which native land the song refers. I'll bet dollars to doughnuts it's not America. Consistent with the common seperatist themes of Black Liberation Theology to which Obama and his family have been steeping themselves for 20 years, singers of this version pledge allegiance to Africa, not America.

No matter how Obama tries to run from being the "black candidate", these radical seperatists will keep coming out publically in favor of him because they can't help themselves. Their slavish worship of him compels them to announce their anti-white, anti-American positions. We saw it at Trinity UM with Rev's Wright and Pfleger and that is only the beginning. Hopefully dumb democrats who're cultishly following this piper over the cliff will wake up at some point and realize that John McCain is plenty liberal for them and the Obamessiah is way over the top.....but I won't hold my breath....we are talking about dumb democrats afterall.

What's in Ed's CD player this week?

Regular reader, and fellow gun nut, Carlos wrote in with this question:

...I was looking at your music section and noticed that it's been 2 or 3 months since the last "Whats in Ed's music player?" If your music taste has changed any since then, you might consider doing another one so that we may ridicule you or put our own music tastes out for ridicule.

Right you are Carlos. I was jamming to some Smashing Pumpkins this morning and realized that it had been quite some time since the last What's in Ed's CD player?. So here it is...

Smashing Pumpkins

Sinatra's Greatist Hits

Dave Brubeck Jazz Collection

Uriah Heep, Best of

Herbie Hancock

Butthole Surfers (a little) they remind me of Primus which can be listened to only in small bits.

Kind of an odd mix but there it is.

More guns equal less crime

A new conceal/carry law went into effect today in Georgia...

The new state law, which Bearden(R-Villa Rica) sponsored, permits licensed gun owners to carry concealed firearms in parks, on public transportation and in restaurants that serve liquor.

I predict, contrary to bed-wetting, liberal hysterics about guns, violent crime will plummet as as result of this legislation. When the criminals don't know who has a gun and who doesn't, they tend to select carefully their victims. Good for Georgia.

Aside: this guy Bearden was planning on taking his weapon to the Atlanta airport to pick up a relative in order to test the TSA's ban on firearms in airports. Wisely, TSA said he'd be arrested the second he steps foot on airport property. Carrying a gun around your neighborhood is one thing but where security is provided, they should have the right to ban them if there is a compelling reason to do so...psychiatric facilities, airports, and police stations are three places that come to mind.