My Sacramento Union Column

This past week I have been very busy writing a new column for The Sacramento Union. Consequently blog posts have suffered.

However, I'll be back on track once I get used to the deadline concept of a column - bi-weekly or perhaps weekly. My focus will be on local and Sacramento news and politics.

And not as fetchingjen...

The Sacramento Union has online daily news and publishes a weekly newspaper. Their motto, "Balance your daily news," is accurate. If you are as weary as I from the left-leaning and non-reporting of The Sacramento Bee, visit sacunion.com for actual journalism.

Subscribe to the newspaper to show your support for professional journalism. And watch for my column...

Venomous Hatred On The Left

Yesterday, only moments after the news broke that White House Press Secretary Tony Snow's cancer is back, psychotic lefties inundated left-leaning websites with venomous hate-filled messages:

TDoff says:

Under the heading of 'What goes around comes around', the cancer in Tony Snow is removing the cancer of Tony Snow from the national scene.

OMG, could there be a god?

PeeJay says:

Yes, the Holier Than Thou crowd is right. We should wish Tony, W, Cheney and Gonzales nothing but the best of health, so that we can then waterboard the shit out of them until they tell us the truth about, well, anything would be nice.

TDoff says:

A pox on all the pious putzes who protest the expressions of those who wish Snow a fond adieu.

Cancer has nothing to do with it, whether it was an eighteen-wheeler driven by a doped-up dealer, a tree felled by a naked beaver, a dose of arsenic-laced semen, whichever of the 'mysterious ways' caught up with this faker, he should be wished a hearty 'Godspeed', and soon.

To paraphrase the Boxer, 'Lying has consequences', or should.

lyleblog says:

Tell The Lying Sack of Crap To Suck It Up and Live With It

This medically proves that when you talk out your ass, it's a matter of garbage out/garbage in. There are women and men receiving rectal exams from Rocket Propelled Grenades, IED's, suicide bombers and mines for no reason. When they come home they have to fight for treatment and rehab. I think the OutHouse could shut up already and quit trying to score political points.

Pelagius says:

@zkemeny: Yeah, he looks pretty bad there. Almost like someone without a colon

A contributor called homofascist stated, "It is a bitch that I wouldn't wish upon even a smarmy, evil f---face liar like Snow. Because really, isn't he OUR smarmy, evil f---face liar?"

The left-leaning blogs to which these were posted offered only disclaimers an no regret for the hateful messages.

Despicable. These people are despicable.

Getting Carded With My Son

My family went out to dinner with another family the other night to celebrate both of our sons getting into the Naval Academy. As the waiter went around the table taking drink orders, I was too busy perusing the wine list to notice that the the other father ordered beer for the boys, 17 and 18 years old. The waiter came back a few minutes later and asked for their ID. Ha Ha, gig's up..."do you need an ID for root beer?" one of the boys asked. Funny. I glared at my son who just shrugged. Whatever. The other dad thought this very funny.

But then the waiter came around to me and asked me for my ID. What! "That's my son," I said indignantly as I pointed across the table. Apparently that wasn't good enough and I had to produce ID, that to his embarassment, proved my age to be 44. He even looked at me as if to say, I carded you?

And then my husband said very loudly, "Turn up the lights!" He thinks he's so funny.

My son and I got carded together... I really feel older and young at the same time; old because my son really looks old enough to order a drink, and young, well, you know. It's good to be carded... I've already forgotten the momentary indignity.

What A REAL Leader Says

Southern Exposure

By Fred Thompson

We are all very well aware of the fact that we have an illegal-immigration problem in this country. As usual, we avoided the problem for as long as we could and when we couldn’t avoid it any longer we were told that, indeed, somewhere between 12 and 20 million people had somehow come into this country unnoticed.

It’s like we went overnight from “no problem” to a problem so big that it now defies a good solution. It’s become one of those “there are no good choices only less bad choices” that Americans are becoming all too familiar with.

We know that the overwhelming majority of illegals come across the Mexican border. Fortunately, we’ve got someone who is all too willing to tell us what we should do about it — the president of Mexico Philipe Calderon. President Calderon doesn’t think much of our border policies. He criticizes our efforts to secure the border with things such as border fencing. He says that bottle necks at U.S. checkpoints hurt Mexican commerce and force his citizens to migrate illegally in order to make a living (and of course send money back to Mexico). He apparently thinks we should do nothing except make American citizens out of his constituents. Calderon also accused U.S. officials of failing to do enough to stop the flow of drugs in to the United States. Mexican politicians gave President Bush an earful of all of this during his recent trip to Mexico.

I think its time for a little plain talk to the leaders of Mexico. Something like:

hey guys, you’re our friends and neighbors and we love you but it’s time you had a little dose of reality. A sovereign nation loses that status if it cannot secure its own borders and we are going to do whatever is necessary to do so, although our policies won’t be as harsh as yours are along your southern border. And criticizing the U.S. for alternately doing too much and too little to stop your illegal activities is not going to set too well with Americans of good will who are trying to figure a way out of the mess that your and our open borders policy has already created.

My friends, it’s also time for a little introspection. Since we all agree that improving Mexico’s economy will help with the illegal-immigration problem, you might want to consider your own left-of -center policies. For example, nationalized industries are not known for enhancing economic growth. Just a thought. But here’s something even more to the point that you might want to think about: What does it say about the leadership of a country when that country’s economy and politics are dependent upon the exportation of its own citizens?

— Fred Thompson is an actor and former United States senator from Tennessee.
© PAUL HARVEY SHOW, ABC RADIO NETWORKS

Weird, Smelly Protestors

Weird & smelly protesters... I can't help it. I've never seen a nicely coifed, tailored or even neat looking protestor. And Cindy Sheehan is not helping their cause.

They are always strange looking, usually need a bath, and remind you of that antisocial, awkward kid in grade school. You know, the one who had greasy hair and always looked glum, as if the world is about to end.

This past weekend marked the anniversary of our war in Iraq, or to quote directly from Sacramento protesters, "to protest the 4th year since the start of the criminal invasion of Iraq," and sponsored by local anti-America lawyers, Steve and Virginia Pearcey (of the hanging soldier from their Land Park roof, fame).

Sacramento's protestors squatted at their usual corner, 16th & Broadway in front of the now defunct pothead-haven Tower Records. We drove by several times during the day; first while they were setting up, and then later after they had been out in the sun for a few hours, their whiney voices getting hoarse.

And from the local fashion police... My favorite protestor was the middle-aged woman dressed like a gypsy. She was rather portly, with long grey hair held off her face by a scarf, and dressed in mutiple layers of brightly colored hippy clothes. She stood out against a sea of earth-colored hemp fabric, Birkenstocks, and backpacks, all with a soft backdrop of Subarus and Prius's and 30-year old oil-spewing Volvos and Volkswagon buses.

Ahhhhh. Local Zen. Eutopia.

"Get a job!" was the typical mantra from passing cars.

(KCRA) A handful of protesters marked the fourth anniversary of the start of the Iraq war on Monday with a demonstration in downtown Sacramento.

Many people dressed in black lay flat on the sidewalk as part of a "die-in" outside of the federal courthouse at the intersection of Fifth and I streets.

(Washington Post) As rain fell in Seattle, hundreds of protesters participated in a march and two rallies. The crowd appeared to contain more than 1,000 people. That's funny. I heard only about 500 protesters showed up.

(Napa Valley Register) Lisa Van de Water protested the Vietnam War in the late 1960s. But never in a million years did she think she would once again be protesting against a war by waving the peace sign at strangers, as she was Monday afternoon.

“It’s great that we can do something, make a stand, (but) I’m really sad we still have to do it, how many times? How many years will it take?” Van de Water said.

On Monday — the fourth anniversary of the launch of the Iraq war — Van de Water was one of about 20 people who participated in an anti-war demonstration at the intersection of highways 221 and 29.

The event was sponsored by United Napans Concerned Over Iraq Lunacy (UNCOIL), and the spot was chosen because of the high traffic at the busy intersection.

Groups displaying peace signs were posted at each of the four corners of the intersection. A flag flew at half-mast in one corner. Hmmmm. That's funny. I drove by and counted seven (7) protestors and just as many cars sitting nearby. Couldn't they at least carpool?

At each of the protests I witnessed, there were very few protesters, chanting stupid sayings, sporting homemade signs and getting flipped off quite frequently.

(amNew York) Carrying signs and shouting anti-war chants, thousands of protesters took to the streets Tuesday as President George W. Bush addressed the U.N.'s General Assembly.

The marchers held signs with the names of slain American soldiers and cartoon versions of the president accompanied by, "Bush lies, who dies?" as they made their way from Herald Square to the U.N.

March organizer United for Peace and Justice estimated the crowd at 3,000, which included union members, 9/11 conspiracy groups, gay rights groups and even the Granny Peace Brigade, whose members were arrested last year for blocking an Army recruiting center.

Still, Tuesday's march was a far cry from the 100,000 demonstrators at a weekend march in Manhattan in February, 2003, a month before the invasion began.

"I have to say it's a disappointing turnout," said marcher Paul Rosa, 44 of Manhattan. "I understand people have to work, but there are four or five million people in this city who are against the war. For protests to be effective, they have to be massive and sustained."

(Sacramento Bee) About 100 local protesters vented their feelings about the war Saturday on Broadway and 16th Street. They waved flags and placards, they chanted, they shouted. They squinted into the afternoon sunshine. They called for the impeachment of their president, the end to the war in Iraq.

They talked about lies, about all the dead and wounded, the need to change course and fast. They were angry and jubilant and hopeful and full of dread, all kinds of mixed emotions behind the clear messages.

It went that way on a street corner in Sacramento and on street corners and at public parks throughout the nation as thousands of anti-war demonstrators marked the fourth anniversary of the war in Iraq.

Also Saturday, anti-war protesters took their signs and sentiments to 16th Street and Broadway near the Tower Theatre, where 100 or so protesters from ages 8 to 83 held their signs and chanted and sang and waved at the passing cars.

If all the honking from motorists was any indication, the war is unpopular and getting more so. Ann Tosaw, 83, had a large placard with a simple message, "Impeach."

"He's not doing his job," she said of Bush. "Every day something new comes up that's wrong. It's destroying the country."

Tosaw, who lives in Citrus Heights, served in World War II with the Navy WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Military Service).

"That war was noble -- we knew what we were fighting against," she said. "Now, we're losing too many of our young people and we're not taking care of the wounded when they come back."

Ann Tosaw, 83, needs to revisit her college history classes if she thinks WWll was noble and this war is not. Perhaps since she's 83 she does not care if those of us who are younger live through another 9/11.

The media folks writing this drivel always throw out "About 100" as the official estimate when few protesters show up. 100? Not even close. There were more people at the coffee bar across the street.

Around the country or here in Sacramento, the protesters experienced the same thing: not much support from passers by. They think the honking they heard was support. Ha. They must have drowned out the passer by while chanting because what I heard was not supportive.

Many of those protesting the Iraq war also protested the Vietnam war, and they are still wearing the same clothes and saying the same catch phrases...

"Hey hey, ho ho, the war in Iraq has gotta go."

How creative. How catchy.

"Bush lied, people died."

Another clever diddy. These same people will defend Bill Clinton to the death with "When Clinton lied, no one died." Can you say Bosnia? Can you say Vince Foster and Ron Brown?

The United For Peace & Justice web page reads: You can help make sure that the 4th anniversary of the illegal, immoral invasion and occupation of Iraq, and the terrible toll it has taken around the world, is marked visibly and vocally in every town, on every street corner in the country.

and then there is this choice piece...

Antiwar Academics United for Peace and Justice Campaign

Recently, several Vassar College faculty members launched a new, exciting campaign to support the antiwar movement. Working in a wide range of disciplines, they have pledged to make a monthly financial contribution to United for Peace and Justice until, together, we end the war in Iraq. And they sent a letter to their colleagues at Vassar urging them to make the same pledge.

Now we are expanding this effort. We invite academics at colleges and universities around the country to participate in this campaign by making a financial contribution and signing on to this letter. Together, we will end this war and prevent future wars of aggression.


No, college professors don't have an agenda.

Or you can buy and proudly wear a t-shirt that asks, "What are you doing to end the war?"

I notice that war protesters mostly talk, and actually do nothing to "end the war." Talk talk, chant, talk, take a long drag, talk some more. Inhale, hold, exhale. "We gotta stop this war, dude."

If you are out of work, or just don't like to work, here is a list of protests and vigils you can participate in, as long as you don't mind driving your Volvo to Davis:

*******
Thursday, Apr 5, 7:30 pm
Encounter Point/b> , a film about reconciliation between Israelis and Palestinians, will be shown at the Varsity Theater (616 2nd Street) as part of the Davis Film Festival. The film is both challenging and uplifting, hopeful and distressing. It is a documentary that captures the stories of individual Israelis and Palestinians who meet regularly to carry out dialogue. What is particularly moving is that each of these people have lost family members to violence perpetuated by "the other side." In this way, Palestinians and Israelis meet not only to share hopes for peace, but to provide comfort and understanding as they acknowledge their common grief. Ther will be a charge of $10.


Repeating Events


Monthly Meeting of the Davis Peace Coalition
the second Monday of each month at 7 pm in the Meeting Room of the Friends (Quaker) Church on the corner of L and 4th streets..

Monthly Meeting of Freedom From War
the first Saturday of each month at 1 pm in the Blanchard Room of the Davis Public Library.

Please note that Freedom From War is now named Teach Peace. Starting on April, 2007, Teach PeaceÊwill be shift to national conference calls on the first Saturday of every month from 1-3: 30 pm. (PST). To participate, call 530-554-7061 for more information.

Tuesday Vigil
Call for Peace Vigil, 4 to 6 pm, every Tuesday, at 16th and J Streets in Sacramento

Wednesday Vigil
Anti-War Vigil, 4 to 6 pm, every Wednesday, at 16th and J Streets in Sacramento

Friday Protest
Protest the deployment of the California National Guard to Iraq, 270th Military Police Co, 1013 58th St., Sac. Every Friday at 7:30 am; bring your own sign. 916-456-6641.

Saturday Vigil
11 am to 12 noon, every Saturday at the G Street Plaza in Davis
The Davis Friends Meeting is sponsoring a weekly vigil, every Saturday, 11:00-12:00, at the Downtown G Street Plaza. The silent vigil will carry the message: WAR IS NOT THE ANSWER. A leaflet that gives constructive alternatives to war is made available to passersby. Community members of all faiths are warmly welcomed. For more information, call Marilee at 756 6881.


Sundays, 8 pm
Media Edge, a weekly series of programs on Davis Community TV. For more information, click here.

Monthly Meeting of Amnesty International - Davis Chapter
First Tuesday of each month at International House, 10 College Park, Davis
Free Dinner at 7 pm. Meeting at 7:20 pm. For more informatiion, email ibhogle@mindspring.com or call 530-297-0407.


Monthly Peace Vigil in Woodland
Every 4th Saturday at 11 am to noon on the front steps of the Yolo County Court House, 725 Court St. Woodland.

********

These people are serious. And I am hunched over, knee-slapping and laughing right now. I'd go to a vigil meeting out of curiosity, but they'd know right awar I was an imposter. I shower daily.

The Latest Republicwimp Non-Scandal

What do you call a Republican appointee doing his job?

Scared.

He looks crosseyed at anyone, and he has a bevy of Democrats crying "scandal," whether or not there is one.

And when the Democrats even whisper scandal, the media prints it as if it is fact. In fact, the media will print anything the Dems say, coherent or not (case-in-point: Ted Kennedy, Howard Dean)

The most fun with the latest non-scandal with Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, is hearing scandal-infested Dems screaming the loudest. As Hillary Clinton shreiks about another vast right-wing conspiracy, do you wonder if Americans have forgotten the embarassing Clinton presidency? Not only was there dirty scandal after filthy scandal from "We Are The President," but they brought scandal into the White House with them upon arrival, and took scandal back out with them packed in the boxes of the White House dishes.

And when the Presidents' Clinton took office in 1993, one of his first official acts was to fire EVERY SINGLE U.S. attorney - that's 93 U.S. Attorneys. Was there a scandal then? No. Not even a whisper of scandal with the U.S. Attorney from Arkansas who was right in the middle of his case against Bill Clinton. The Presidents' Clinton had the presidential right to replace U.S. Attorneys who serve as appointees. End of Story.

But not today. Alberto Gonzales is groveling before the media saying he's sorry for mishandling the eight U.S. Attorney terminations. And Republicans are groveling right along with him, fearful of the Democrats and their media machine, but more fearful of being forever linked to President George Bush. Reelection is far more important to these lily-livered politicians than defending the President and the Attorney General.

Scandal? Not. Hillary and her fellow hypocrites will continue to swim circles around Republican wimps as long as they smell blood in the water. Dems have the media covering for them while professing to be truth-seekers, and Republicans rolling over and playing dead like sick dogs.

While Americans are tired of the Democrat hypocracy and media cover ups, we are tiring more of the self-serving, weak-kneed Republicans hoping to make it under the radar without notice until campaign time. And it's not going to work.

Are We A Lawless Society?

John Adams' historic phrase found in the Massachusetts Constitution of 1789, "a government of laws and not of men," saying that it "epitomizes the distinguishing character of our political society ... law alone saves a society from being ... ruled by mere brute power however disguised."

California laws do not apply to everyone.

In fact, I'll go so far to say that if you are a caucasian, middle to upper class, tax payer, own your business or are a manager or an executive, drive a new or fairly new car and live in a nice home, our laws apply only to you.

If you are unemployed, lower class, an illegal alien, drive an unregistered beater car, carry phony identification and social security number, fraudulently take welfare, send your kids to public school for the free breakfast and lunch, buy designer athletic shoes for your kids at $135 a pop, use the emergency room for your medical care, you don't have to obey the laws. In fact, the law won't even come looking for you because that would be considered racial profiling and God knows, in California we don't profile by race.

Smog laws were originally set up in an effort to cleam up the exhaust emissions from automobiles. However, beater cars with expired registration are exempt from emission requirements, while my car, which is only 18 months old, will have to be smog checked before I can re-register it. My car, which I properly maintain, does not spew garbage, nor will it when I sell it to the next owner. However, the illegal alien driving the 1970 AMC Gremlin isn't required to smog check his car because to enforce this law would mean the state is racially profiling.

Yes, the do-gooders at the state think that in order to enforce our laws, only illegal and poor Mexicans will pay the price. That's how libs think... they are bigots who regularly racially profile and cause segregation.

If I was caught with drugs on my person, I would have the book thrown at me and be made an example of. A very expensive lawyer would charge an arm and a leg and maybe, just maybe, because I don't have a record, I'd get probation with credit for time served. However, if an illegal alien was caught with drugs, his free lawyer would make a plea agreement and he'd walk by dinner time, never to be seen again (until the next crime). And I don't mean walk back across the border.

We live in a lawless society for the most part. The laws we already have on the books are not enforced except where revenue is needed (speed kills...). Legislators keep making new laws so they actually have something to do, instead of enforcing the more-than-sufficient laws we already have. What good are laws if we just keep making more?

Why else do so many people run stop signs, blow through red lights, cheat on their taxes, steal from their employers, use drugs, practice random sex acts, and lie? Who will catch them. Who even cares?

The illegal alien problem is a case in point.

Illegal aliens have flooded our state. They are bankrupting our hospitals and "social services" (read welfare, food stamps, lots of free stuff). The governor and the legislature have rushed to provide instate college tuition to illegals, unconcerned about denying an education to our own citizens. Governor Schwarzenegger has pledged to allow illegals to obtain California drivers licenses. This after pledging he would not give licenses to illegal aliens.

So what happened to Prop 187 and Save our State? For background, World Net Daily reported in February 2004: "A group of immigration-reform activists hopes to restore some of the provisions of California's ill-fated Proposition 187 by passing a new initiative in November.

According to organizers, the Save our State initiative would once again enact certain provisions of the proposition that attempted to bar illegal aliens living in the state from receiving taxpayer-supported services. Proposition 187, approved in 1994 by nearly 60 percent of California voters, was essentially killed when, after a lengthy court battle, then-Gov. Gray Davis dropped an appeal filed earlier by the state.

Since the crux of the court argument against Prop 187 focused on the issue of denying public school to illegal aliens, the new proposition drops the education element and prohibits only other public benefits, such as welfare, from going to illegal aliens.

"Federal law allows us to deny public benefits to illegals, if we want to. But we're required to pass a law to say so. This new measure does exactly that," says the Save 187 website.

The initiative would require all government workers processing applications for public benefits to verify the immigration status of applicants.

In addition, the proposition prohibits the issuance of driver's licenses to illegal aliens.

Besides preventing illegal aliens from obtaining driver's licenses, the initiative prohibits the use of "matricular consular" cards and other foreign documents intended for use by illegal aliens in the U.S.

The text of the petition says if passed, the initiative could save the state $100 million a year in public benefits that would not be dispersed to illegal aliens.

In addition, part of the proposal requires state and local officials to comply with federal immigration law."

Even though California voters approved prop 187 through the democratic process, more than 10 years later, it still is not in effect. The proposition, which would have denied health care and education to illegal immigrant residents of California, was approved by a majority of voters in 1994 but was immediately challenged in court and was eventually struck down by a US district court four years later. We call that liberal Judicial Activism.

How's that for a lawless society? The illegal aliens in this state have more rights and considerations than our residents. Our legislators tiptoe around them, the cities are afraid of discrimination lawsuits, the media prints nothing but stories about poor immigrants, and we continue to pay for them, even though we voted to end the freebies.

Laws? How do we get the laws we already have, enforced? Traffic laws are just a simple example of laws that few people adhere to. And other than speeding, rarely do people get pulled over for reckless or dangerous driving. What about the DWI's... that's the acronym for Driving While Illegal. In many cities, cops are instructed to NOT ticket Mexicans for fear of discrimination and profiling lawsuits. That's as effective as pulling my blonde son out of the security line at the airport while letting the young middle eastern man behind him go through.

This is all about liberal politics. Tax, spend, spend even more on illegal aliens who don't pay taxes, reduce laws to pablum, and only enforce those who already obey the law... cause we pay our fines.

Heather Bends the Rules... Again

In a very toned-down article by the Sacramento Bee, and buried on page A-7, it was reported that Mayor Heather Fargo has the same amnesia problem that Hillary Clinton has.

(Sacramento Bee) Mayor Heather Fargo violated California's Political Reform Act when she failed to identify the person who bought her home, as required in her economic interest statements, a state commission found Thursday.

After the Fair Political Practices Commission's investigation, Fargo agreed to pay a $2,000 settlement -- allowing her to avoid an administrative hearing. The FPPC board unanimously approved the agreement
"It was an oversight. I'm sorry it happened, but the problem has been corrected."

Typically, the FPPC fines officials $100 for economic-interest violations.

Nonetheless, Fargo's fine is considered "very significant," according to William L. Williams Jr., the agency's chief of enforcement.

California's Political Reform Act requires certain public officials to report their assets and income so conflicts of interest can be avoided. Each year, economic-interest statements must be filed.

On Dec. 5, 2003, before the March 2004 mayoral election, Fargo filed her candidate economic-interest statement. She mentioned that she had sold her home at 1854 Crossmill Way on Jan. 23, 2003, but didn't disclose the buyer, the FPPC said.

Fargo also was required to file a yearly officeholder economic- interest statement. That April 1, 2004, document again didn't name the homebuyer.

A consultant assigned to look into the violation left a message for Fargo in June 2004, alerting the mayor to amend her statement. She filed an amendment in August that listed the source of income from her home sale as "private property purchased through River Point Realty (Linda Bennett, agent)." The statement noted she grossed more than $100,000 from the sale.

Heather Fargo has demonstrated again that she has another common trait with Hillary Clinton: the laws and rules of society don't apply to her; she is above the law. She is arrogant and indifferent and has learned how to play by the Democrats rules.

Mr. & Mrs. Co-President

This will be an ongoing piece, and will be frequently updated and addded to.

After eight long years of "We are the President," many people in America have short memories for the High Crimes and Misdemeanors the Clinton's are most definitely guilty of.

This seems like a good time to have a Clinton 1-A refresher course, since Hillary is running for President and Bill is running all over the world promoting himself.

I recently heard an excellent definition of a psychopath as someone who is very intelligent and high functioning in society, but without morals, or the ability to feel remorse... how they must enjoy what they do without remorse to get in the way! The very definition of the Clintons.

Judge Susan Webber Wright did dismiss the case against Clinton but it went up on appeal, and she said in her decision that he committed contempt of court. He lied. She found him in contempt for lying under oath at a grand jury, and she gave him the right to a hearing to argue against her ruling -- and Clinton refused.The judge held Clinton in contempt because he assaulted the integrity of the judiciary. There is no right to a jury trial in such cases, but a hearing was offered Clinton, and he didn't want to avail himself of it because he knew his lies would become even more apparent. She found him in contempt; he lied. She gave him a chance to conduct a hearing to disagree, and he said, "Nope." He punted, paid the fine and went on his merry way because he knew that more scrutiny would uncover the fact and cement it in more and more people's minds that he had in fact lied. She said she didn't hold him in criminal contempt as opposed to civil contempt because she didn't want to create a double jeopardy situation because Ken Starr was still investigating him for lying.

For several years, the Washington Weekly published a compiled list of alleged crimes in the Clinton administration. Here are just some of the crimes:

BILL CLINTON


(1) Used State Police for personal purposes.

(2) Directed State Police to fabricate incriminating evidence
against a political opponent: Terry Reed.

(3) Conspired with David Hale and Jim McDougal to defraud the
Small Business Administration.

(4) Was complicit in the shipment of drugs through Arkansas.

(5) Allowed laudering of drug money through ADFA.

(6) Appointed and protected Arkansas Medical Examiner Fahmy Malak
who repeatedly obstructed justice by declaring murders as
"suicides" or "accidents."

(7) Has never accounted for his actions during 40 days behind the
Iron Curtain during the Vietnam War.

(8) Tipped off Governor Tucker about upcoming criminal referral.

(9) Violated Arkansas campaign finance laws.

(10) Violated his oath ofoffice to uphold the Constitution by
signing into law an ex post facto law, a retroactive tax
increase.

(11) Fired RTC chiefAlbert Casey to allow his friend Roger
Altman to monitor and block Whitewater investigations.

(12) Fired FBI director William Sessions to prevent an
autonomous FBI from investigating the Foster suicide and from
resisting cooperation in the Filegate operation.

(13) Fired all U.S. Attorneys to appoint Paula Casey to prevent
Judge David Hale from testifying against Clinton.

(14) Offered State Troopers federal jobs in return for their
silence about Clinton's crimes.

(15) Blocked Justice Department indictments after Inspector
General Sherman Funk found "criminal violations of the Privacy
Act provable beyond reasonable doubt" when former Bush employee
files were searched and leaked to the press.

(16) Appointed friend and now-convicted felon Webster Hubbell to
number 3 position in Justice Department in order to be able to
block Whitewater criminal referrals.

(17) Blocked the criminal trial of Representative Ford, a
Tennessee Democrat.

(18) Appointed a campaign activist to head the Commodity Futures
Trading Commission, without the mandated "advice and consent" of
the Senate, to derail a probe of his and Hillary's financial
dealings.
Bill Clinton is under investigation by Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr.

HILLARY CLINTON


(1) Took a $100,000 bribe, camouflaged as futures trades,
from Tyson Foods Inc.

(2) Speculated in Health Care industry futures while overseeing
legislative reform of same.

(3) Failed to correct false testimony by co-defendant Ira
Magaziner in Health Care trial.

(4) Obstructed justice by ordering the shredding of Vince
Foster's documents in the Rose Law Firm.

(5) Ordered members of the Health Care Task Force to shred
documents that were the target of a court probe.

(6) Ordered the removal of documents from Vince Foster's office.

(7) Told aides to lie about their removal of documents from
Foster's office

(8) Obstructed justice by keeping her billing records, a document
sought under subpoena, in the White House residence.

(9) Lied to investigators about her knowledge about billing
records.

(10) Lied to investigators about her involvement in the Castle
Grande land flip con.

(11) Ordered the use of the FBI to discredit Travel Office
employees.

(12) Lied to investigators about her involvement in the firing of
Travel Office Employees.

In “My FBI,” Louis Freeh wrote, “The problem was with Bill Clinton -- the scandals and the rumored scandals, the incubating ones and the dying ones never ended. Whatever moral compass the president was consulting was leading him in the wrong direction. His closets were full of skeletons just waiting to burst out.”

In another revelation, Freeh says the former president let down the American people and the families of victims of the Khobar Towers terror attack in Saudi Arabia. After promising to bring to justice those responsible for the bombing that killed 19 and injured hundreds, Freeh says Clinton refused to personally ask Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah to allow the FBI to question bombing suspects the kingdom had in custody – the only way the bureau could secure the interviews, according to Freeh. Freeh writes in the book, “Bill Clinton raised the subject only to tell the crown prince that he understood the Saudis’ reluctance to cooperate and then he hit Abdullah up for a contribution to the Clinton Presidential Library.” Says Freeh, “That’s a fact that I am reporting.”

more to come...

LIBBY vs. THE DEMS Part ll

Ann Coulter wrote a piece today that better explains my post yesterday and with more detail:

(Coulter) "This makes it official: It's illegal to be Republican." (I said that yuesterday!)

"Since Teddy Kennedy walked away from a dead girl with only a wrist slap (which was knocked down to a mild talking-to, plus time served: zero), Democrats have apparently become a protected class in America, immune from criminal prosecution no matter what they do.

As a result, Democrats have run wild, accepting bribes, destroying classified information, lying under oath, molesting interns, driving under the influence, obstructing justice and engaging in sex with underage girls, among other things.

Meanwhile, conservatives of any importance constantly have to spend millions of dollars defending themselves from utterly frivolous criminal prosecutions. Everything is illegal, but only Republicans get prosecuted.


Conservative radio personality Rush Limbaugh was subjected to a three-year criminal investigation for allegedly buying prescription drugs illegally to treat chronic back pain. Despite the witch-hunt, Democrat prosecutor Barry E. Krischer never turned up a crime.

In another prescription drug case with a different result, last year, Rep. Patrick Kennedy (Democrat), apparently high as a kite on prescription drugs, crashed a car on Capitol Hill at 3 a.m. That's abuse of prescription drugs plus a DUI offense. Result: no charges whatsoever and one day of press on Fox News Channel.


In 2006, Democrat and major Clinton contributor Jeffrey Epstein was nabbed in Palm Beach in a massive police investigation into his hiring of local underage schoolgirls for sex, which I'm told used to be a violation of some kind of statute in the Palm Beach area.

The police presented Limbaugh prosecutor Krischer with boatloads of evidence, including the videotaped statements of five of Epstein's alleged victims, the procurer of the girls for Epstein and 16 other witnesses.

But the same prosecutor who spent three years maniacally investigating Limbaugh's alleged misuse of back-pain pills refused to bring statutory rape charges against a Clinton contributor. Enraging the police, who had spent months on the investigation, Krischer let Epstein off after a few hours on a single count of solicitation of prostitution. The Clinton supporter walked, and his victims were branded as whores.

The Republican former House Whip Tom DeLay is currently under indictment for a minor campaign finance violation. Democratic prosecutor Ronnie Earle had to empanel six grand juries before he could find one to indict DeLay on these pathetic charges -- and this is in Austin, Texas (the Upper West Side with better-looking people).

That final grand jury was so eager to indict DeLay that it indicted him on one charge that was not even a crime -- and which has since been tossed out by the courts.

After winning his primary despite the indictment, DeLay decided to withdraw from the race rather than campaign under a cloud of suspicion, and Republicans lost one of their strongest champions in Congress.

Compare DeLay's case with that of Rep. William "The Refrigerator" Jefferson, Democrat. Two years ago, an FBI investigation caught Jefferson on videotape taking $100,000 in bribe money. When the FBI searched Jefferson's house, they found $90,000 in cash stuffed in his freezer. Two people have already pleaded guilty to paying Jefferson the bribe money.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Democrat, engaged in a complicated land swindle, buying a parcel of land for $400,000 and selling it for over $1 million a few years later. (At least it wasn't cattle futures!)

Reid also received more than four times as much money from Jack Abramoff (nearly $70,000) as Tom DeLay ($15,000). DeLay returned the money; Reid refuses to do so. Why should he? He's a Democrat.

Former Clinton national security adviser Sandy Berger literally received a sentence of community service for stuffing classified national security documents in his pants and then destroying them -- big, fat federal felonies.

But Scooter Libby is facing real prison time for forgetting who told him about some bozo's wife.

Bill Clinton was not even prosecuted for obstruction of justice offenses so egregious that the entire Supreme Court staged a historic boycott of his State of the Union address in 2000.

By contrast, Linda Tripp, whose only mistake was befriending the office hosebag and then declining to perjure herself, spent millions on lawyers to defend a harassment prosecution based on far-fetched interpretations of state wiretapping laws.

Liberal law professors currently warning about the "high price" of pursuing terrorists under the Patriot Act had nothing but blood lust for Tripp one year after Clinton was impeached (Steven Lubet, "Linda Tripp Deserves to be Prosecuted," New York Times, 8/25/99).

Criminal prosecution is a surrogate for political warfare, but in this war, Republicans are gutless appeasers.

Bush has got to pardon Libby."
*****************

When are Republicans going to pursue Democrat criminals in the name of justice, instead of acting as if they are taking the high road? The American public is growing tired of political criminals from both sides of the fence, but far more weary of the liberal criminals who never seem to see the inside of a prison for egregious crimes, and of the the Republicans too wimpy to see them prosecuted.

The law is the law. Unless you are a conservative Republican, then the book is thrown at you by liberal prosecutors with outrageous agendas.

Be sure to read Fred Barnes' piece from last September: The Plamegate
Hall of Shame at the Weekley Standard.

Here is some of it:

The rogues' gallery of those who acted badly in the CIA "leak" case turns out to be different from what the media led us to expect. Note that we put the word "leak" in quotation marks, because it's clear now there was no leak at all, just idle talk, and certainly no smear campaign against Joseph Wilson for criticizing President Bush's Iraq policy. It's as if a giant hoax were perpetrated on the country--by the media, by partisan opponents of the Bush administration, even by several Bush subordinates who betrayed the president and their White House colleagues. The hoax lingered for three years and is only now being fully exposed for what it was. Let's start at the top of the rogues' list:

* Richard Armitage, the deputy secretary of state under Colin Powell, was the first to reveal that Wilson's wife was a CIA employee. He blabbed carelessly to Bob Woodward of the Washington Post, then to columnist Robert Novak, who mentioned it in a July 2003 column. Armitage, after admitting this to the FBI in October 2003, stood by silently year after year as Vice President Cheney, Cheney's chief of staff Scooter Libby, Karl Rove, and other White House officials were blamed for what he had done, and President Bush suffered politically. Loyalty is not Armitage's strong suit.

* Joseph Wilson, an ex-ambassador and National Security Council official in the Clinton and Bush I administrations, sparked the "leak" controversy in the first place by writing in the New York Times that Bush had lied in his 2003 State of the Union address about Saddam Hussein's seeking uranium in Africa for nuclear weapons. The CIA had sent Wilson to Niger in 2002 to check out precisely that point, and he claimed to have debunked it. Later, the Senate Intelligence Committee concluded that nearly everything Wilson wrote or said about Bush, Cheney, Iraq, and his own trip to Africa was untrue. Wilson was a fraud. "It's unfortunate that so many people took him seriously," the Washington Post editorialized sorrowfully last week.

* Colin Powell, Bush's friend and secretary of state in the first Bush term, knew what Armitage had done and never let on. He met with Bush countless times as the White House was
being pummeled in the media and by Demo crats for outing a CIA agent to take revenge on her husband. Bush called publicly for the leaker to be identified. Powell knew the identity, but remained silent. Some friend.

Libby vs. The Dems

(Washington Post) A federal jury today convicted I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby of lying about his role in the leak of an undercover CIA officer's identity, finding the vice president's former chief of staff guilty of two counts of perjury, one count of making false statements and one count of obstruction of justice, while acquitting him of a single count of lying to the FBI.

LIBBY GUILTY and Sandy Berger is still walking around with stolen documents in his socks?

Apparently it is illegal to be Republican.

(CNN) Former National Security Adviser Sandy Berger was sentenced Thursday to community service and probation and fined $50,000 for illegally removing highly classified documents from the National Archives and intentionally destroying some of them.

Berger must perform 100 hours of community service and pay the fine as well as $6,905 for the administrative costs of his two-year probation, a district court judge ruled.

The double standard is appalling. And blatant. And flies in the face of the Constitution.

William Jefferson: (CNN) Federal agents searched the Capitol Hill office of a Louisiana congressman under investigation on bribery charges Sunday, while newly released court papers said agents found $90,000 in cash last year in his Washington home.The Justice Department has been investigating Jefferson's relationship to telecommunications deals in Africa and elsewhere, and the House Ethics Committee launched an investigation ... still going on...

Barney Frank: his gay boyfriend ran a gay brothel out of his townhouse. But Mark Foley, who obviously had a problem with young pages, was ruined on trumped up allegations about underage page love. Which do you find illegal? Both of these men are swine, but Barney Frank not only kept his job, he was reelected and supported by his fellow Democrats. Is there no shame?

Robert Byrd: has the nickname "Sheets" Byrd for a reason. And he's still a racist, still makes slipups with the "N" word. But that's okay because he's a Dem.

Tom Delay: what was he run out of town for?

Trent Lott: offhand remark to Strom Thrumond, who was a segregationist in the 50's.

Randy Cunningham: crook. ostrasized. convicted. The end.

Al Gore: phoning prospective donors from the White House during the Clinton-Gore re-election effort. One memo advised Bill Clinton and Gore that the media fund - which the vice president sought money for in calls from his office - contained $675,000 in "hard money" but only $100,000 in "soft money." More soft money needed to be raised, the memo said. The memo from the Democrat Party was forwarded to Gore and Clinton in February 1996 by then-White House deputy chief of staff Harold Ickes. (Associated Press, 9/10/97. This soft vs. hard distinction was a false one raised by Reno to protect Gore. One problem - he knew he was raising hard money.) Gore "lost his memory" some 85 times - 85 times - when he was questioned by the FBI about his role in various fundraising scandals, including "Chinagate," an illegal scheme that raised millions of dollars in campaign-cash from communist Chinese for the Clinton-Gore reelection effort in 1996.

Actually, I could write a novel about Al Gore and his habitual, pathological lying. But his criminal activities, as with all other democrat criminals, gets a wash from the liberal media.

Scooter Libby was convicted of perjury for which there was no crime. He was convicted for telling the truth about Joe Wilson and his wife. He was convicted even after Richard Armitage admitted that HE "outed" Valerie Plame, who wasn't even a covert CIA agent. Thanks to the media. Apparrently nailing the Bush administration at any cost, is more important to liberals than the truth will ever be.

Talking About Crime Commissions

Last week I wrote about Sacramento's useless Mayor Heather Fargo, and her idea of fighting crime and gangs: A Youth Commission of Sacramento Area high school students to keep City Council abreast of "Youth-related issues."

Instead of adding more cops to the already pittiful number (668 on the street), Heather and her merry band of Council Nitwits want to talk more about the problem. In what amounts to a typical liberal response to a very real problem, Sacramento City Council lead by Mayor Heather Fargo established a "youth czar" position to coordinate prevention and intervention programs.

(Last fall, after a spike in gang violence, Sacramento Police Chief Albert Najera said he would boost the number of officers assigned to gang crimes, after increasing the unit from seven to 13 in October to curb a similar spike in youth violence. Whoa. We now have a whopping 13 police officers dedicated to gang crimes? This, for more than 5,000 gang members in Sacramento?)

Prevention and Intervention. Did you get those words?

In other words, for the existing rampant crime and gang warfare already taking place on our streets, you get the 668 cops we have. For the upcoming gangbangers, you get the Youth Czar and prevention and intervention and lots of talking around a big table at the Ritz Carlton in Laguna Beach.

Here's what these people are paid to do: "the Little Hoover Commission urged state policymakers to make prevention the primary policy for reducing youth crime and violence. It recommended a state-level youth crime and violence prevention council and state support in the form of political, financial and technical capital to advance a youth violence prevention policy agenda that meets the needs of California communities.

The commission urged the state to streamline and integrate funding for prevention programs to ensure that all communities receive some prevention resources and that neighborhoods with the greatest violence are targeted for additional assistance. As it stands now, communities with the best grant writers are often the most successful at bringing in grant dollars for violence prevention -- regardless of their need relative to other communities." (Sacramento Bee)

So, someone paid these guys to come up with this brilliant plan; urging the state to support political, financial and technical capital, to streamline and integrate funding for prevention programs...

Maybe we should have let the Youth Commission decide what to do after all.

For Sacramento, success also will hinge on the city's ability to identify and effectively implement proven prevention programs, and then do the follow-up job of evaluating how they are working.

More programs? Don't we already have "programs" for identifying and implementing "proven" prevention programs, or did those fail too?

The commission recommended that the state establish a resource center to gather, assess and disseminate the latest research and best practices to policymakers and practitioners.

Now there is an answer: establish another "resource center" for research gathering.

This is the liberal's answer to every major problem: talk, talk, talk, and never actually do anything. Identify, research, gather, assess, implement... Only the problem is that they never actually implement anything.

How many commissions are established to talk about crime? Every government body, from the local level, city, state, up to and including federal, love commissions. They get paid to establish commissions, and get paid to gather research that someone else has already done, then get paid to sit around and identify the research, then get paid to assess the research, but never actually implement anything because someone would be accountable. Bureaucrats hate being accountable.

Sheriff John McGinness and Chief Albert Nájera recognize that beefed up gang enforcement will only temporarily stem the bleeding and that a real juvenile justice system includes a continuum of prevention, intervention and enforcement strategies.

The author of this opinion piece, Michael Alpert is chairman of the Little Hoover Commission. D-Rancho Santa Fe)
Here is his Bio: Chairman of the Little Hoover Commission since March 22, 2001. Served as vice chairman of the Commission from June 21, 1995 to March 22, 2001. Retired partner in the law firm of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher; specialized in corporate securities. Former chief deputy commissioner of the California Department of Corporations. Former member of the San Diego County Juvenile Justice Commission, served as chairman for one year. Originally appointed to the Little Hoover Commission by Assembly Speaker Willie L. Brown, Jr. on May 10, 1994. Re-appointed by the Senate Rules Committee on August 25, 1997, February 25, 1999, and January 8, 2003.

A Willie Brown appointee... lives in Rancho Santa Fe, former securities lawyer, sounds like a plum position to me, and one that requires no results. No wonder he likes Heather Fargo's Youth Commission.

The Commission's mission is to investigate state government operations and -- through reports, recommendations and legislative proposals -- promote efficiency, economy and improved service.

If this isn't the fox guarding the henhouse - a Willie Brown appointee heading up the commission that promotes state government efficiency - what is?

We may not be able to get rid of Mr. Alpert as he is an appointee, however Heather Fargo is accountable to the voters of Sacramento. She is responsible as is the City Council, for actually doing something about the safety and security of Sacramento's citizens. And she is directly responsible for the rising crime rates in our fair city.

Appointing commissions and Youth Czars does not stop the criminals in their tracks. Cops do. And jails house them. Tougher crime laws act as prevention, not youth centers and after school programs. Yes, they are nice places for lonely, directionless kids to hang out. But only tough consequences for criminals can prevent future crimes. Plea bargaining, civil rights lawyers and wimpy judges are standing in the way of real consequences for those who committ crimes. And we can add Heather Fargo's Youth Commissions and Youth Czars to that list.

In fact, add Heather Fargo to that list. She is standing in the way of accomplishing crime prevention and crime reduction.

It Isn't Easy Being Crunchy

I am a Crunchy Con. What on earth is a Crunchy Con you ask? I refer you to Rod Dreher; the fellow who coined the phrase and wrote the book:

What do you call people who vote for Bush but shop at Whole Foods? Crunchy cons. And according to Dreher, an editor at the Dallas Morning News, they're forming a thriving counterculture within the contemporary conservative movement. United by a "cultural sensibility, not an ideology," crunchy conservatives, he says, have some habits and beliefs often identified with cultural liberals, like shopping at agriculture co-ops and rejecting suburban sprawl. (check out his book Crunchy Cons at Amazon).

I shop organic... at The Natural Food Coop, where YES, I am a member/owner. I also shop Whole Foods and the Sunday morning Farmers Market. My husband and sons have been subjected to interesting concoctions over the years of various vegetarian, tofu, chili and nut burger meals. We eat plenty of meat... don't get me wrong, but I buy free range, organic, happy cow meat, and roaming free chickens.

I am also an environmentalist. Frankly, I consider anyone who gives a damn about our ebvironment an environmentalist; we're just not whackos infringing on other's rights to live as they choose.

My quest for feeling healthier in my 20's, led me to become a rabid researcher on healthy eating and that led me to organic foods. I love to cook and entertain, and I don't care much for prepared foods as they make me feel lousy. It's personal with me - not a religious movement.

So, what's my beef?

Organic Weirdos, extremists, righteous granola crunchers, and people shopping at the Food Coop who haven't bathed in over a week. Shopping at Whole Foods or the Natural Food Coop can be exasperating than shopping at COSTCO on the Saturday morning before Christmas. I always leave ready to throttle a smelly Rastafarian or earth mama. I'll expand on this later.

And now these same extremists are kvetching that Whole Foods isn't far left enough for them.

Bill Bishop, president of Willard Bishop Consulting, a retail food consulting firm, said that Whole Foods has drifted toward the middle,which has made the store more popular with a broader range of people. Many of today’s Whole Foods shoppers are more interested in prepared foods than in whether the eggs are organic. But that carries a downside. “The folks truly devoted to organic and natural can’t get them all in Whole Foods and have to go somewhere else,” he said.

“There is a segment of shoppers,” he added, “who have moved ahead of Whole Foods. They think it is important to have a smaller carbon footprint and to want to help small farmers.” He said that John Mackey, the chief executive officer and co-founder of Whole Foods, “is lagging behind his leading shoppers.”

Here we go again with a minority of lefties upset because Whole Foods dared to run a responsible business, and gasp, make money, and gasp, expand. It gets worse:

Last year the author Michael Pollan called Mr. Mackey hypocritical in his book “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” formarketing organic and sustainable values while buying most of theproduce from agribusiness giants like Earthbound Farm and Cal-Organic.
Whole Foods buys dairy products from a co-op of organic family farmers, but there are concerns that some of the cows producing some Whole Foods products aren't given enough pasture time:

Whole Foods buys its private label milk from Cropp, a cooperative of organic family farmers who receive high marks from the Cornucopia Institute, a nonprofit agricultural policy research group, for humanetreatment of organic cows.

But despite continuing criticism that Horizon Organic gives its cows very little access to pasture, Whole Foods continues to sell Horizon’s products.

In Slate Magazines' "The dark secrets of Whole Foods," author Field Maloney (not kidding) whines about whether or not Whole Foods is really "natural" and truly
"organic."

But here's another technical point that Whole Foods fails to mention and that highlights what has gone wrong with the organic-food movement in the last couple of decades. Let's say you live in New York City and want to buy a pound of tomatoes in season. Say you can choose between conventionally grown New Jersey tomatoes or organic ones grown in Chile. Of course, the New Jersey tomatoes will be cheaper. They will also almost certainly be fresher, having traveled a fraction of the distance. But which is the more eco-conscious choice? In terms of energy savings, there's no contest: Just think of the fossil fuels expended getting those organic tomatoes from Chile.

Think of those fossil fuels wasted just for some fresh cherry tomatoes. Does Mr. Maloney care about the organic farmer in Chile whose entire family is supported because of Whole Foods? No. He'd rather drone on about fossil fuels. Some people can find fault with anything.

And five or six big California farms dominate the whole (organic farming) industry." There's a widespread misperception in this country—one that organic growers, no matter how giant, happily encourage—that "organic" means "small family farmer." That hasn't been the case for years, certainly not since 1990, when the Department of Agriculture drew up its official guidelines for organic food.

That pesky Department of Agriculture; how dare they draw up guidelines for consumer safety and health.

John Mackey, the company's chairman, likes to say, "There's no inherent reason why business cannot be ethical, socially responsible, and profitable." And under the umbrella creed of "sustainability," Whole Foods pays its workers a solid living wage—its lowest earners average $13.15 an hour—with excellent benefits and health care. No executive makes more than 14 times the employee average.

However, the real crux of Field Maloney's article is this: "All things being equal, food grown without pesticides is healthier for you. But American populism chafes against the notion of good health for those who can afford it. Charges of elitism—media wags, in otherwise flattering profiles, have called Whole Foods "Whole Paycheck" and "wholesome, healthy for the wholesome, wealthy"—are the only criticism of Whole Foods that seems to have stuck."

Oooohhhhh, not elitism. How dare we afford our organic produce instead of a cartful of junk food from Wal Mart, or dinners of Burger King with our food stamps. Is the real complaint about the prices, or that financially responsible, working conservatives are eating organic?

Mr. Maloney won't admit that in addition to the elitism issue, he really is appalled that Whole Foods makes a profit and treats it's employees well... and all without a union.

A few years ago the Sacramento Natural Food Coop unionized. Those good ole' communist worker-members felt they couldn't manage themselves apparently and unionized. Then they opened up a store in South Sacramento's Elk Grove. It was not the hit they had hoped and closed it's doors January 21, 2007 after losing a great deal of money on the store.

Sacramento News and Review (July 06): In the May/June edition of the organization’s Co-op Reporter, Coop President, Paul Cultrera detailed the 2- to 6-percent cut for union employees, the 4- to 7-percent cut for non-union employees and cuts of up to 10 percent for management. Co-op members also were asked to defer benefits. Altogether, said Cultrera, these efforts trimmed $40,000 a month from expenses. It’s helped, but maybe not enough.

Obviously there were many reasons the store didn't make it including some bad luck. However, having the union has not helped the flexibility needed to run a business. Apparently the member-owner-workers didn't trust themselves to run the business that had operated very well for many years. And when they expanded, I didn't hear any grumbling from the members.

So, back to Crunchy Cons: what exactly are we? Author Rod Dreher explains: "Crunchy cons prefer old houses and mom-and-pop shops to McMansions and strip malls.... Many of us homeschool our kids, and cheerfully embrace nonconformity. I read Edmund Burke and wear Birkenstock sandals. Go figure."

And while I shop at my Natural Food Coop and Whole Foods, you would not mistake me for an Earth mama; I don't wear Birkenstocks, I wear makeup and fragrance, I polish my nails, I wear my hair cut short and stylist and gasp, it is highlighted, I dress like a woman (no hemp) and I am a meat eater - no vegan subsistance for me.

I find that the majority of earth people at the natural food coops are so at peace (high?) that they are oblivious to common courtesy: they block the aisles and don't respond to excuse me, let their kids roam about freely touching every piece of fruit and veggie they can reach with their dirty little hands, they smell nasty, and they stare rudely at anyone dressed in skinny jeans or a dress suit. And when I arrive at the checkstand with my membership card in hand, I always get a look of surprise from the checker. Ah hah! You thought I wasn't a member!

The most fun however, is when I bring my son along and he wears a GOP t-shirt. The hisses and growls coming from the leftie crowd are fabulous entertainment.

What? Can't the Crunchy Cons eat well without being a total granola crunching leftie?

Heather's Gangs of Sacramento

I've been critical of Sacramento's Mayor, Heather Fargo. In fact, I find her as useless as tits on a wild boar. However, Sacramento has a history of rather useless local politicians, often using political positions within our State Capitol to springboard them into state politics. Heather is just worse than most of the others.

Heather, not the sharpest knife in the drawer and reveling in her uselessness, is now opting to run for a third term. Meanwhile under her watch, Gangs have taken over Sacramento. There are more than 5,000 known gangs in our city.


And instead of putting more cops on the street, Heather created The Sacramento City Youth Commission; a gift to her old employer, The Department of Parks and Recreation (remember that Heather was a Park Ranger).

The Sacramento City Youth Commission was established by the Sacramento City Council to serve as an advisory group to provide recommendations on youth related issues in Sacramento.

This was Heather's answer to rising gang violence... a Youth Commission! Sheer brilliance.

The Commission on Sacramento Youth, established two years ago after a previous eruption of violence, recommended Tuesday that the city appoint a "youth czar" to coordinate programs such as job internships and after-school programs.


"You can't arrest your way out of this problem," City Councilman Kevin McCarty said. "We've got to work on things to keep young people out of trouble."
More political astuteness coming from another local politician... Let's sit around the ole' round table and discuss youth violence (don't call it gang violence - it's not good for the reelection campaign). The Youth Commission is a bunch of kids who "inform" the City Council on "youth related issues." Do you think they have any gang-members on the commission?

The Commission has also established an annual Scholarship Award and a Coat and Blanket Drive. Now there's a way to curb gang violence - give them coats and blankets.

This is unbelievable.

Sacramento has a population of about 457,514 (as of 2006), with 668 police officers on the street. Long Beach has 896 police officers on the street with a population of about 490,166. San Jose has 1,349 police officers on the street, Oakland has 730, San Diego has 2,070 and even Stockton has 388. This is outrageous - 668 police officers on the street? Is it any wonder that crime is on the rise? The odds of getting arrested for committing a crime are pretty slim.

Even within the Sacramento Police Department, finding any information on gang violence is nearly impossible. Sacramento County has the only gang violence information available:
The Sacramento County Probation Department, Juvenile Field Services Division is assigned the task of monitoring juvenile offenders placed on formal probation in the community, committed to out-of-home placement, and those released from custody on home supervision and electronic monitoring. The Division’s total caseload maintains a monthly average exceeding 3000 juvenile offenders.

3,000 juvenile offenders per month. 668 Police officers on the street.

The Sacramento District Attorney established The Gang Violence and Hate Crime Suppression Team in 1983. This team is responsible for the prosecution of hardcore street gang offenders. The team targets those individuals who commit gang-related violent felonies and those who function as leaders of their criminal street gang.

And while the City of Sacramento seems to be more interested in racial profiling and not offending anyone, gangs continue to rape and pillage Sacramento.

Heather Fargo continues to discuss "innovative" ideas on how to address and prevent the proliferation of gang violence throughout California in her multi-city conferences. And here's how:
.... "The efforts will be predicated on a three pronged approach: stopping gang violence, intervening with those at greatest risk, and prevention through youth development..."

These City bafoons sit around at conferences looking dire at one another, discussing gang violence, talking about intervening those at greatest risk, and prevention through youth development...

WHAT? This is nothing but government-speak for doing absolutely nothing. This could be accomplished within the confines of their City offices instead of the Ritz Carlton Costa Mesa on tax-funded boondoggel trips. But that's another discussion about stealing from the taxpayers.

In 2005, assaults were up to 3,025, there were 52 murders, 170 rapes, 2,018 robberies, 5,842 burglaries, 15,455 larcenies and 13,321 thefts reported to the police.

Heather continues only to discuss crimes and createcommissions and hope one of the bright teenagers on the commission finds a cure for gang violence. And this instead of funding more police officers. We live in a city with rampant random violence. And Heather wants to hold think tanks.

Did I already say that I think she's a useless as tits on a wild boar?