Midweek Roundup

Adam & Eve sculpture; one of many on the columns of the Notre Dame cathedral in Paris

Right now, the 1st Armored Division, based in Wiesbaden Germany, is deploying to Iraq for the second time. Things have really been hectic here, so blogging has been light. However, here is a roundup of news you might have missed:

- France is going bankrupt? In a socialist state that rewards people for rioting and not working? Impossible!

- Frances B. Semler, a 73 year-old woman, sits on the Park board of Kansas City, Missouri. Not a terribly powerful position, but somehow she has drawn the ire of various groups such as National Council of La Raza, and the NAACP, who plan to boycott the entire city just because Ms. Semler works there. Her crime? She is a member of the Minutemen, a group that assists the Border Patrol, and opposes illegal immigration.

"We see the Minutemen as an extremist group that espouses hate and vigilanteism and some violence," said Janet Murguia, president of NCLR. "A member of such a group, no matter how upstanding in other ways, should have no place representing Kansas City."

This is rich. "La Raza" literally means "the race", and it's a race-based Hispanic power group; in other words, a racist institution. It's a real sign of the times when a group like this is trying to claim the moral high ground over another group that is simply based on obeying immigration law (the Minutemen have also never been charged with acts of violence). It's a no brainer who I support here. Interestingly, the mayor of KC, Mark Funkhouser, is himself a member of the NAACP, and supports Ms. Semler. We live in interesting times indeed.

- Ban Ki-Moon, the UN Secretary General, is planning to get the UN involved in Iraq again. It's about time. I remember distinctly when both the UN and the International Red Cross headquarters were suicide bombed in the Summer of 2003. Both pulled out immediately, which handed the terrorists one more victory. The UN can't work miracles, but they lose any credibility when discussing Iraq if they can't even show they are concerned about it. Captain's Quarters also discusses this here.

- The NYT admits that The General "Betray Us" Advertisement was charged at a far lower than normal rate, and went against it's own policy. This puts some of the more hysterical defenders of the advertisement in an uncomfortable position. At least some are furiously backpedaling or trying to change the subject.

- In the US, you often need to show a photo ID when buying a pack of cigarettes, but not when voting. That may change soon. Finally, the US Supreme Court has decided to hear a case over the issue.

- Heartbreaking story; a soldier is killed in Iraq one day after his son is born.

- US politics probably seem alien to the rest of the world. Jesse Jackson, a self-styled black civil rights leader, accuses a presidential candidate of "acting white". Some civil-right leader. No explanation on why this is necessarily a bad thing, but there's another troubling assumption here too. Why shouldn't the candidate "act white" sometimes? Barak Obama, the candidate in question, is half white after all, born of an American mother and Kenyan father. Why do some black activists believe that a person's African ancestry should automatically trump all the rest?

- Future shock. A little off topic: Some predictions about the future from 1961. They range from the way off the mark:

[House] doors will open automatically, and clothing will be put away by remote control. The heating and cooling systems will be built into the furniture and rugs.

To the uncanny:

You'll have a home control room - an electronics centre, where messages will be recorded when you're away from home. This will play back when you return, and also give you up-to-the minute world news, and transcribe your latest mail.

Wow.





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