Divine Right to $1.00 per Gallon

When did $1.00 for a gallon of gas become a Constitutional Amendment?

Capitalists understand that OPEC has the right to sell crude oil (or pennywhistles and moon pies for that matter) at whatever price the market will bear. And as consumers, we either pay their price, pay a competitor less, develop alternatives, or increase our own supply.

What Americans can't do, however, is take full advantage of the profits that a laissez-faire system affords each and every one of us, then question the right of others to enjoy the same.

I am curious though, why it is that EVERYTHING else we buy can double, triple, or quadruple in price (housing, fast food, candy, cement, financial services, hotel rooms, bread, software, glass, etc...) yet, gasoline must stay near $1.00 or "sound the alarm - something is terribly wrong!"

After all, adjusted for inflation, gasoline sells at about the same price it did more than 30 years ago. Don't trust the MSM to give you the straight dope either as they parrot one another with the phrase, "Record Gas Prices...blah blah blah."

I don't expect Liberals with little understanding of free markets or free peoples to get this...but I do expect Conservatives to do more than "get it." We must help our ignorant friends around us complaining at the pumps and shaking their fists at televised images of our President by enlightening them to Economics 101.

This is easier said than done, of course. You'll have to endure the irrational counter charges that you're in bed with big oil, brainwashed, or even a Republican. Nonetheless, press on and apply a Socratic approach to enlighten the mouth-breathers with this question:

"Why is a gallon of milk almost twice as expensive as a gallon of gasoline?"

King Contrary

Guess who graces the front page of the DNC's web site this month?



Apparently, he didn't read my earlier piece on this.

Thanks, Senator. Thanks a lot.

World Tour Media Whore

Anyone else about had enough of John "Hillary would make a good president" McCain?

Whether it's his opportunistic grandstanding on Abu Ghraib, his flirtation with the Kerry ticket last year, his betrayal of scores of Swift Boat Vets, or most recently his mutinous opposition to the judicial filibuster, you can count on John Ker...err..I mean John McCain to do what will ingratiate him to Don Imus and Chris Matthews.

One has to wonder....Since last year McCain was clearly positioning himself for what he thought would be a Kerry administration in 2005, you don't think he's now positioning himself for a possible "John McCain Show" on MSNBC, do you?

Probably not. But, Senator, in case you're wondering how the Conservative zeitgeist is shaping up for a 2008 Presidential run, you might want to reconsider running as GOP. "Jim in Chicago" sums up Republican sentiment with this comment on pollpundit's blog:

"I would spend a month tunnelling through a mountain of broken glass
to vote against John McCain in the primary."

On second thought, perhaps John McCain would make a great President...of France.

I Pledged Nothing

I called my local NPR station today to advise that this year, I would be giving nothing.

In past years I have made modest donations as I have enjoyed the commercial free news and programs since I was in high school. Despite their Leftist leanings, I have always found the news thoughtful and credible.

Until last year.

The fever-pitched favoritism and bias during the 2004 presidential election became too much. I simply can't believe a word they say now. I told the volunteer this when I called to advise them I would not be pledging this year. Incredibly, she seemed to get it.

Too bad the news editors still don't. Just last week, upon waking to NPR on my wife's alarm clock, I heard 5 mentions of "moderate Republican" in just 5 minutes. You know, "moderate" as opposed to the "jackbooted, foaming at the mouth, reactionary, extreme Republicans."

What Liberal media?

Well, it's "Reagan Era" at least...

" I used to think that the day would never come..."


New Order releases Waiting for the Sirens' Call in the US on April 26. Most of it is available on iTunes now. It's their strongest release since 1990's Technique.

A review I read tonight hits the nail on the head as to why Waiting has entered UK charts at number 5 last week and has fans remembering why they loved this band so much.

Bill Lamb of blogcritics.org:

"Steering away from 2001's guitar-heavy Get Ready, on Waiting For the Sirens Call New Order once again embrace a universe of instantly memorable pop hooks infused with an ever-present, but never oppressive, air of melancholy. It is music slow to sink in and possibly will even seem ephemeral at first listen, but when heard multiple times it is an album you will want to hear again and again. From the shiny pop-rock of "Morning Night and Day" to the Kraftwerkian electronics of "Krafty," Waiting For the Sirens Call is a pop masterpiece that ranks with the band's best work."

Amen.

HBO's "Left of the Dial"

What was intended to capture the birth of a new progressive radio era, actually captures the beginning of the end.

Wow.

This is a must view for Conservatives.

After watching this documentary covering Air America's launch and anemic progress in the year since its inception, I don't think any Right-wing group could have made a more damning exposé.

Realize this -- if not for the generosity of 4 or more billionaire donors (Evan Cohen, Mark Walsh, Danny Goldberg, Doug Creeger, did I miss someone?), this network would cease to exist due to lack of listeners, inept management, weak talent, and most importantly -- a lack of ad revenue. Air America is apparently an involuntary non-profit, as it were.

It's not entirely clear how long moneyed donors will continue to throw good dollars after bad at this radio stillbirth. After all, is there profit to be made in a market already flooded with Liberal thought?

Apparently Garofalo and Franken still don't get that for the last 30 years Norman Lear, Bob Edwards, Dan Rather, Alan Alda, Ed Asner, et al. have been giving this stuff away for free morning, noon, and night on the radio and on television.

Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, and all the others exist on radio precisely as a middle finger to the Left's unchallenged dominance on TV news and prime-time shows in the last three decades. Air America is apparently the Left's panicked response to the emergence of little ole Fox News and the popularity of Right-wing radio...with one exception, that is. Conservative radio shows actually do make money - even without fawning New York Times Magazine front pages.

How they have managed to find funding quarterly to keep the power on is indeed a mystery. However, what is vividly clear in this docu-drama is that the network is staffed with neurotic, self-absorbed, ego maniacs whose airheaded rants demonstrate nothing about what they stand for. Sadly, one sees only what they stand against. Sound familiar?

Who better than Liberals themselves to demonstrate their manic obsession with criticism? It's only when these jocks realize they now have to fill 3 hours on the air with their own ideas instead of simply shouting down Conservatives' plans that you begin to feel sorry for them...and bored too. Predictably, expect insults leveled at the usual suspects: President Bush, Dick Cheney, Condoleeza Rice, Halliburton, Karl Rove, Don Rumsfeld, and Christians as a whole. YAWNNN...

I got the feeling I was watching some ill-conceived cocktail party idea among Leftist celebrities who had too much money and hubris to be told, "Wait! This is a horrible idea!" by the designated drivers in the room.
The documentary displays in full, wide-screen glory (or is it gory?) Air America's bankruptcy 2 weeks after their first show, the deceit surrounding their solvency by owners, and the subsequent panhandling that has served as the network's primary source of income in the last year.

These sad radio "personalities" include Janeane Garofalo (way over her hea), Randi Rhodes (all the charm and talent of a catheter), Al "I demand to be taken seriously" Franken, and as of March 2005, the moral and intellectual giant, Jerry Springer. Yes, THAT Jerry Springer. The day Conservatives choose Jerry Springer as spokesman is the day I bid farewell to Conservatism.

I say "sad" not simply for their painful and awkward incompetence in radio, but for the depressing state of their lives depicted off the microphone which are marked by personal chaos, ubiquitous profanity, seething hatreds, duplicity among friends, professional jealousy, etc...

It's the same "lost" look and feel of the unprincipled, the undisciplined, the untalented, the uninspired, etc... (Public Enemy front man turned radio host, Chuck D can’t even make it to his show on time.) You may know these types in your own lives. I remember them in college at the parties, faculty lounges, and the“Peace & Justice” rallies I attended as a Liberal undergraduate with a head full of mush.
Grab the popcorn and turn on HBO soon to check it out. Christmas for Conservatives has come early. I give it two enthusiastic Thumbs Up! It's the "feel good" comedy of the year!

But, don't take my word for it...check out this ratings overview to find out how Air America (or is it "Err America") is REALLY doing.

Here's a Hint: You won't get this from the mainstream media (MSM) who are all too eager to congratulate Franken and company on one year of existence instead of 365 days of near extinction and daily commercial failure.