Rick Perry fancies himself a King decreeing benevolence, but is in fact a purveyor of nanny state policies, a usurper of democracy, and a moron

Have you seen this man?


He is Rick Perry, Governor of the great state of Texas, and he has a terrific head of hair.

NOTE: Were my mother still alive, she would need to stop reading at this point, for (like many of your mothers) she told me that if I could not say something nice about someone I should not say anything at all. And my niceness has now ended.

Last week, after our state's legislature had adjourned for the weekend, our Governor issued an Executive Order...

...directing the Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) to adopt rules requiring all girls age 11 and 12 to receive the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine prior to entering sixth grade, effective September 2008.

Perhaps he thought it would not be noticed on Super Bowl weekend. Perhaps he thought everyone would instantly agree with him and his benevolence. He thought wrong.

You see, many people in the great state of Texas, both Republican AND Democrat, are independently minded, which is to say that we want as little interference by our government as possible. It's one of the reasons that our state legislature meets only once every two years. The less time they are in session, the less damage they can do and the fewer rights they can take away from us. This attitude stems from, among other things, our state's history, first as an independent republic and then as the 28th state. Had the founding fathers of Texas been spineless lemmings, Texas would not be.

And when our Governor acts in a way reminiscent of the monarchs of whom our nation fought to be free, well . . . you might say that it gets folks attention. In a bad way.

a purveyor of nanny state policies
Texans do not want their governor telling them how they have to live their lives. And we certainly don't want him telling us that our daughters need a vaccine against a sexually transmitted disease when they are 11 years old. This reeks of HillaryCare. And it reeks of a liberal nanny state, where you are no longer responsible for your actions, but instead need the government to care for you and make important decisions for you.

a usurper of democracy
Rick Perry ordered Texans to get this vaccine after the legislature had retired for the weekend. Without the possibility of discussion among our elected representatives, our Governor arbitrarily decided to make law. What event necessitated your action here? Did HPV cases suddenly become an epidemic that hasn't been reported anywhere? For the record, Rick, you don't do this in Texas. Already, members of the legislature are moving to nullify your actions. And my own state senator had this to say:

“The Governor owes it to the Legislature and to the public as to why these emergency actions are justified. Governor, is HPV the new black plague? If not, then we should respect the elected representative process. Let us debate these issues in public as it was intended.”

a moron
Sorry to be crass here, but I just gotta say it. Purposefully trying to circumvent the legislature. Issuing an order in a state known for the independent mindedness of its citizens. And digging in your heels on the issue even when everyone else tells you you're wrong.

By the way, here are a few things I found out about Gardasil, the vaccine in question:

1. The vaccine only decreases your chances of getting cervical cancer, it doesn’t eliminate the risk.
2. Even without the vaccine, the number of cervical cancer cases is trending downward and has been for years.
3. Gardasil is one of the most expensive vaccines ever.
4. Merck will not be liable if Gardasil turns out to be harmful some time in the future.
5. There have been no long-term studies done on the effect of the vaccine after 5-10 or more years, and testing on young girls has been extremely limited.
6. It is unknown how long the immunity provided by Gardasil actually lasts.
7. The studies done on Gardasil were not set up to investigate whether the vaccine itself has the potential to cause cancer.
8. Gardasil is one of many vaccines containing aluminum, and there is increasing evidence suggesting that aluminum-based vaccines can have harmful effects.
9. Gardasil is only for women.

Finally, here's the opening two paragraphs of a press release from the National Vaccine Information Center concerning Gardasil.

The National Vaccine Information Center (NVIC), the nation's leading vaccine safety and informed consent advocacy organization, is urging state legislatures to investigate the safety and cost of mandating Merck's HPV vaccine (GARDASIL) for all pre-adolescent girls before introducing legislation amending state vaccine laws. In an analysis of reports made to the federal Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) since the CDC's July 2006 universal use recommendation for all young girls, NVIC found reports of loss of consciousness, seizures, joint pain and Guillain-Barre Syndrome. In a separate evaluation of costs for young girls being vaccinated in private pediatrician offices, NVIC discovered that parents living in the Washington, D.C. area will be paying between $500 and $900 to have their daughters receive three doses of GARDASIL.

"GARDASIL safety appears to have been studied in fewer than 2,000 girls aged 9 to 15 years and it is unclear how long they were followed up. [1] VAERS is now receiving reports of loss of consciousness, seizures, arthritis and other neurological problems in young girls who have received the shot," said NVIC President Barbara Loe Fisher. "At the same time, parents who take their daughters to private pediatricians are going to be shocked to find that they will be paying two to three times the widely publicized $360 cost for the three-dose series. The cost is going to break the pocketbooks of parents and break the banks of both insurance companies and taxpayers, when the reality is that almost all cases of HPV-associated cervical cancer can be prevented with annual pap screening of girls who are sexually active." [emphasis mime]

Next time you see this man, don't think "King." Think "moron."

Happy Birthday President Reagan

"Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same."

There's one secret the drive-by media keeps really well

And that's our nation's economy. By any measure, we are living in a very prosperous time and experiencing a healthy national economy. Much of this is due to the enactment by Congress of President Bush's tax cuts. Check out the graph below:


It comes from the President's State of the Economy Overview. Did you know that 7.2 million jobs have been created since 2003? You certainly wouldn't know it if you listed to the drive-by media. I urge you to download and read the entire report.

From President Bush's most recent State of the Union address:

A future of hope and opportunity begins with a growing economy – and that is what we have. … This economy is on the move, and our job is to keep it that way, not with more government, but with more enterprise...

Via John Hinderaker at the Power Line

The left hand still isn't talking to the other left hand

I told you last week about how the Senate wasn't going to pass a straight minimum wage increase like the House did. Sure enough, they passed a minimum wage increase tied to tax cuts for small businesses. And folks in the House are none too pleased.

At issue are tax breaks, worth $8.3 billion over 10 years, that the Senate included in its bill to help small businesses offset the cost of paying higher wages. The Senate bill passed Thursday by an overwhelming 94-3 vote. A House bill that breezed through last month contained no tax cuts.

How the conflict is resolved remains unclear, though party leaders in the House and Senate said they were certain the minimum wage would ultimately become law.

Senate Democrats say they need the tax cuts to win Republican support to overcome procedural blocks against the legislation. It takes 60 votes in the 100-member Senate to cut off debate on legislation. There are 49 Republicans in the Senate.

House Democrats on Friday continued to hold out for a "clean" bill without tax breaks and urged Senate Democrats to challenge Republicans to vote against a wage-only bill.

"We believe that this bill ought to move on its own merits and be sent to the president," House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said. "We're hopeful that that will happen."

Hoyer said he was not "drawing a line in the sand" but said the minimum wage and the tax breaks "don't necessarily need to be attached."

Hey, Representative Hoyer, don't attach them. Go ahead and draw that line the in sand. In fact, just move ahead without any tax breaks at all. Please. That way, we'll avoid this minimum wage increase stupidity, and the unemployment rate will remain low.

Hillary is discovering that she's not "the Annointed One"

Yesterday, the junior senator from New York heard an ear full of applause . . . for Barak Obama.

“But whether you were for or against it, we all have an obligation to come up with the best plan to bring our troops home.” He was greeted with whoops of “Love Ya!”.

Mrs Clinton, by contrast, struggled to win over her audience. Reminding it that she recently proposed capping troop levels, some in the crowd shouted out: “What about bringing them home?” Mrs Clinton persevered. “If I’d been president in October 2002 I would not have started this war,” she said. “And if we haven’t ended this war in Congress by January 2009, as President I will!” A carefully choreographed standing ovation by a block Clinton supporters followed, but at least two thirds of those in the Washington Hilton remained seated. [emphasis mine]

Senator Obama, you had better make sure your bodyguards are paid well.

UPDATE - Engram at Back Talk has a wonderful take on the substance of this story.

They spray painted the Capitol building

The Hate America crowd was allowed to deface the Capitol.

Anti-war protesters were allowed to spray paint on part of the west front steps of the United States Capitol building after police were ordered to break their security line by their leadership, two sources told The Hill.

According to the sources, police officers were livid when they were told to fall back by U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) Chief Phillip Morse andDeputy Chief Daniel Nichols. "They were the commanders on the scene," one source said, who requested anonymity. "It was disgusting."

More evidence that tells us the United States may never win another war again.

We may never win another war

Remember the National Guardsmen who, when they saw invaders, retreated from our border following standard operating procedure? Well, they'll be receiving commendations . . . for retreating.

Four Tennessee National Guard members who retreated from their post along Arizona's southern border when they were confronted by gunmen from Mexico will receive commendations for their actions.

How do you win a war if you're too busy running away?

Forty years ago today...

Our nation experienced a great tragedy. We were in a race with the Evil Empire to reach the Moon before them. Our greatest minds and most experienced pilots were focused on getting there first. But in our rush to be first, important things were overlooked, and three Americans were killed; Gus Grissom, Ed White, and Roger Chaffee. Today, they were remembered at Cape Canaveral.

"Each of these individuals knew they were part of something larger than themselves," said Mick Ukleka, chairman of the Astronaut Memorial Foundation. "The risk was not reckless. It was well thought out. But it is dangerous."

They are heroes we should never forget.

"The vaulting ambition of America's Lady Macbeth"

That's the title of an article by Gerard Baker in the Times Online that I found via Michelle Malkin.

There are many reasons people think Mrs Clinton will not be elected president. She lacks warmth; she is too polarising a figure; the American people don’t want to relive the psychodrama of the eight years of the Clinton presidency.

But they all miss this essential counterpoint. As you consider her career this past 15 years or so in the public spotlight, it is impossible not to be struck, and even impressed, by the sheer ruthless, unapologetic, unshameable way in which she has pursued this ambition, and confirmed that there is literally nothing she will not do, say, think or feel to achieve it. Here, finally, is someone who has taken the black arts of the politician’s trade, the dissembling, the trimming, the pandering, all the way to their logical conclusion.

Now, you may have noticed that I do not like Her Vileness. Good for you. In case you haven't noticed, let me be clear; I detest this woman and rue the day she might attain the presidency.

If a democrat is elected president in 2008, that will be bad. That person will surely have Supreme Court appointments. One of the liberal justices (can't remember which one) doesn't even attend regular meetings anymore; he just calls in from home due to the state of his health. And Ginsberg is said to be in poor health herself. Moreover the left would direct our foreign policy and would most assuredly see to it that the United States goes down in defeat against the Terrorists.

But if Her Vileness is elected president...

I will be truly fearful for the damage she will do. And don't you believe this drivel that "she has too much baggage to be elected president." Remember that her husband was elected—twice. If our nation was stupid enough to do that, then our nation is stupid enough to elect her.

The budget deficit is shrinking . . . again

There's one fewer thing for the lefties to complain about: a large budget deficit.

Bumper tax receipts are shrinking the U.S. budget gap with surprising speed, but economists worry a brighter near-term picture will encourage more spending or breed complacency about the looming strains from retiring baby boomers.

...

Massive corporate and individual tax payments led to a record December surplus, which brought the deficit for the first quarter of fiscal 2007 down to $80.4 billion from $119.38 billion a year earlier.

But how can this be? President Bush lowered tax rates, that means the deficit should go up. Right?

Yes, it should, if you're a liberal and you have no clue about supply-side economics. But for all of us who live within the realm of reality, this is old news.

Oopps! The left hand didn't talk to the other left hand

Remember when the House passed a minimum wage/unemployment increase as part of their "first hundred hours"? Well, the Senate voted yesterday . . . to NOT pass it.

Democrats' promise of a quick increase in the minimum wage ran aground Wednesday in the Senate, where lawmakers are insisting it include new tax breaks for restaurants and other businesses that rely on low-pay workers.

On a 54-43 vote, liberals lost an effort to advance a House-passed bill that would lift the pay floor from $5.15 to $7.25 an hour without any accompanying tax cut. Opponents of the tax cut needed 60 votes to prevail.

The vote sent a message to House Democrats and liberals in the Senate that only a hybrid tax and minimum wage package could succeed in the Senate. But any tax breaks in the bill would put the Senate on a collision course with the House, which is required by the Constitution to initiate tax measures.

Guess the lefties' honeymoon is over. And so soon?

Amnesty-peddling Martinez set to lead the RNC

I guess some people refuse to learn. At their first meeting of the year last week in Washington, the RNC elected as their General Chairman Senator Mel Martinez, a supporter of President Bush's amnesty for illegal aliens policy. I can say (with a small degree of pride) that I personally wrote both my district and my state GOP chairpersons asking them to vote against Martinez. I don't know how they voted (but I'll follow up with them). But I found out that someone in the GOP was as unhappy with Martinez as was I.

A member of the Republican National Committee from President Bush's home state yesterday escalated the rebellion against Mr. Bush's choice to head the committee going into the 2008 presidential elections.

Texas RNC member Denise McNamara said the attempt by Mr. Bush's supporters on the national committee to name Sen. Mel Martinez of Florida as general chairman "is like pouring gas on an already smoldering electorate," citing Mr. Martinez's role in promoting last year's "comprehensive" immigration bill in the Senate. [emphasis mine]

"Choosing an RNC chairman who supports amnesty [for illegal aliens] is tantamount to telling the conservative majority of Americans that they do not matter."

Way to go Denise! Too bad we don't have more of you.

"I'm Hillary Rodham Clinton, and I DON'T approve of this message."

Well, I almost don't know what to say about this. It's . . . wonderful. I was surfing over at the great Michele Malkin's blog and came across this post on Hot Air, her video companion blog.

Oh my.

I mean, OH MY!

You've really got to see this. I've embedded the video below myself. The liberals at Saturday Night Live decided to tell the truth about Her Vileness. Mind you, they're not supposed to. They should have been following the liberals playbook. But someone at SNL thought otherwise, and this is the result. WARNING: there are bleeped obscenities near the end of the video, about the last minute or so.

For humor to work, it must be grounded in the truth.

Guard your wife and kids; she's "beginning a conversation"

Hillary Evita Clinton announced today that she will be running for President.

In a videotaped message posted on her Web site, Clinton said she was eager to start a dialogue with voters about challenges she hoped to tackle as president - affordable health care, deficit reduction and bringing the "right" end to the Iraq war.

"I'm not just starting a campaign, though, I'm beginning a conversation with you, with America," she said. "Let's talk. Let's chat. The conversation in Washington has been just a little one-sided lately, don't you think?"

Well sure, when it comes to you, the conversation is always one-sided. The real question is will you really have a conversation with someone? You see, in a conversation you are allowed to ask questions and propose answers, but then you must also listen to another party ask questions and propose answers. Here are some questions I might propose:

• Exactly and with excruciating specificity how did you make all that money in the cattle futures market?
  
• Seriously, what was your relationship with Vince Foster?
  
• Why were you so insistent on getting the White House travel staff fired?
  
• Will you try once again to nationalize one-seventh of our nation's economy with your demonstrably doomed socialized health care nightmare?
  
• You (presumably) shared marriage vows with William Jefferson Blythe Clinton, yet he can't seem to keep them. Of the women who have publicly claimed some type of sexual interaction with your husband, wanted or unwanted, of how many were you aware prior to their public revelation?
1. Monica Lewinsky
2. Paula Jones
3. Christy Zercher
4. Gennifer Flowers
5. Elizabeth Ward Gracen
6. Sally Perdue
7. Kathleen Willey
8. Dolly Kyle Browning
9. Juanita Broaddrick

Just a few questions for starters. Plenty more where those came from.

Hypocrisy, thy name be Pelosi

"Bug Eyes" Pelosi, that is. You see, when the Defeat-ocrats voted for a minimum wage hike/increase in unemployment a couple of days ago, they exempted American Samoa from the increase.

So what?

Oh, nothing really. Except that StarKist Tuna owns two packing plants in American Samoa.

And StarKist is owned by the Delmonte Corporation.

And Delmonte is headquartered in San Francisco.

And San Francisco is represented by . . . (together, everyone) . . . Bug Eyes Pelosi.

The bill also extends for the first time the federal minimum wage to the U.S. territory of the Northern Mariana Islands. However, it exempts American Samoa, another Pacific island territory that would become the only U.S. territory not subject to federal minimum-wage laws.

One of the biggest opponents of the federal minimum wage in Samoa is StarKist Tuna, which owns one of the two packing plants that together employ more than 5,000 Samoans, or nearly 75 percent of the island's work force. StarKist's parent company, Del Monte Corp., has headquarters in San Francisco, which is represented by Mrs. Pelosi. The other plant belongs to California-based Chicken of the Sea.

"There's something fishy going on here," said Rep. Patrick T. McHenry, North Carolina Republican.

During the House debate yesterday on stem-cell research, Mr. McHenry raised a parliamentary inquiry as to whether an amendment could be offered that would exempt American Samoa from stem-cell research, "just as it was for the minimum-wage bill."

A clearly perturbed Rep. Barney Frank, the Massachusetts Democrat who was presiding, cut off Mr. McHenry and shouted, "No, it would not be."

"So, the chair is saying I may not offer an amendment exempting American Samoa?" Mr. McHenry pressed.

"The gentleman is making a speech and will sustain," Mr. Frank shouted as he slammed his large wooden gavel against the rostrum.

Poor liberals, they just can't help themselves.

Defeat-ocrats vote for abortion-focused false hope

Today the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives voted 253-174 to allow federal tax dollars to be used for embryonic stem cell research, otherwise known as the destruction of human life for research purposes.

This vote, by the way, fulfills a second promise the Defeat-ocrats made before the election. Let's see, higher unemployment, murder in the name of research . . . can't wait to see what's next.

Cut-and-run-ocrats vote to increase unemployment

In a perfect example of economic illiteracy, the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives voted 315-116 to make it more expensive to hire workers by increasing the federally-mandated minimum wage and thus increasing our nation's unemployment rate.

Business groups and other critics said it could lead to higher prices for goods and services, force small companies to pink-slip existing workers or hire fewer new ones, and crimp profits.

But that's what liberalism is - doing something because it feels good, not because it's the correct thing to do.

If we had a war, nobody would come

When you think it can't get worse...

My previous post concerned the invasion of our nation by gunmen from Mexico into Arizona on Thursday, January 4, and the retreat of our National Guard from their posts. Here is the official statement regarding the retreat from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Office of Congressional Affairs. And here's the money quote:

One of the subjects approached the observation post and came within 20 yards of the site. Following standard operating procedure, the national Guardsmen slowly retreated to their vehicle and drove approximately 200 yards away from the site. A CBP air asset arrived on scene within minutes and flew over the area assessing the risk. Five Border Patrol ground Agents were on-site within 10 minutes of the initial call. The ground agents and the air asset tracked the subjects back into Mexico.

Following standard operating procedure. Did someone forget to tell them that they're the National GUARD and not the National YIELD?

What if we had a war and nobody came?

Much like the invasion from Mexico that happened yesterday in Arizona.

A U.S. Border Patrol entry Identification Team site was overrun Wednesday night along Arizona's border with Mexico.

According to the Border Patrol, an unknown number of gunmen attacked the site in the state's West Desert Region around 11 p.m. The site is manned by National Guardsmen. Those guardsmen were forced to retreat.

I'm going to repeat that last sentence: "Those guardsmen were forced to retreat." Hey Governor Perry, if this had happened on the Texas border, how much effect would border cameras have had?

It just keeps growing, and growing, and growing...

$4,500,000,000 - State of Texas budget surplus estimate prior to April 2006

$8,000,000,000 - State of Texas budget surplus estimate on April 17, 2006 by comptroller Strayhorn

$15,500,000,000 - State of Texas budget surplus estimate by House Spekaer Tom Craddick

Money quote by my new state senator, Dan Patrick:

"Texans are fair and reasonable people, and if we have a huge surplus, I think most of them would say, 'Let's set some aside because we never know what the future holds. And let's take some of it and address specific crucial needs,' " he said.

"But most of it should come back to us. Because government never fails at spending every dollar we send them. And, quite frankly, there could be a $30 billion surplus and there would be people saying we shouldn't send any back."

Suppose you were overcharged for something at a grocery store. When you go back to the store and demonstrate the overcharge to the store owner, he tells you he's keeping your money. What side would win the case in court?

Why doesn't government follow the laws of reality?

A prayer to begin 2007

Most Gracious Heavenly Father,

Thank You for Your Son in whose righteousness I can come before You. Help me be more like Him.
Thank You for my beautiful wife. Help me love her more every day.
Thank You for my beautiful children. Help me love them more and train them every day to be strong and wise leaders for You.
Thank You for my family, my friends, and my loved ones. Help me to give more of myself to them.
Thank You for my job. Help me to work hard and well.
Thank you for my country. Help me to act and speak with wisdom and passion for it's blessings.

Before You laid the foundations of the world, You knew I would sit here tonight, completely undeserving of Your love and forgiveness, yet their grateful recipient solely through the sacrifice of Your Son. Make me mindful every day of 2007 of how much You love me.

I pray these things and I believe these things in the precious name of Your Son,
and His name is Jesus,

Amen.

Dreamgirls

There are three definitive American art forms: jazz, film, and musical theater. Rare is the time any of the three come together. They did so in Chicago in 2002. Like that appropriately-Oscar-winning effort, Dreamgirls uses the same confluence of art to provide a spectacular movie-going experience.

Some preface. I've never seen the original stage version of Dreamgirls (or Chicago, for that matter). So I can't compare what I saw on the big screen to what I might have seen on the stage. And I'm glad, because what I saw on the big screen had me riveted. Right from the start, you know you're about the hear great songs sung by great voices. When the Dreamettes' first chance at something big seems near, you're crushed to see it taken away so quickly.

I won't give you a plot summary. You can find that elsewhere. But I will talk about the casting. Where did they get all these names? Beyonce Knowles, Jamie Foxx, Eddie Murphy, Danny Glover. An outstanding cast that fit their characters perfectly; and not just the leads, but the secondary characters as well. Eddie Murphy did surprisingly well, I thought. (I hope that was his voice and not a dubbing.) And I'll talk about the set design and costuming. You knew what year it was simply by looking at the clothes or the furniture in any given scene. Outstanding.

But, by far, the best part of the film is Jennifer Hudson. Mrs. Light Bulb and I are American Idol fanatics. I say again, fanatics. We were heartbroken the week Jennifer was voted off the third season. To see this young woman in her screen debut, providing the best performace of the film was wonderfully fulfilling. The audience we saw it with cheered at the end of "And I Am Telling You." (I'm serious. I was screaming myself.) This young lady can sing AND act. And if she doesn't win the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress this February, I may never watch another Academy Awards telecast again.

Dreamgirls - go see it.

It's called PERMANENT REHABILITATION

Don't the drive-bys know that the term "execution" is not politically cleansed? Hey drive-bys, get with it guys. It's called permanent rehabilitation.

First, rehabilitation. Well that's what every liberal wants for every criminal, right? "To restore formally to former capacity, standing, rank, rights, or privileges." And, the word rehabilitation connotes a sense of newness; a re-birth, if you will. Now add to it the modifier permanent. Seriously, who doesn't want something that will "exist perpetually," I ask you?

O.K. Let's use our politically cleansed term in a sentence. Today, December 30, 2006, Saddam Hussein was permanently rehabilitated. Now doesn't that make you feel good?

For everything there is a season

And I have been in a blogging dormancy season which is soon coming to an end. Five business trips, post-election funk, two holidays, a Gall-bladder-ectomy, and Mrs. Light Bulb in an auto-pedestrian dust-up have been all-consuming for the past few weeks.

However, I am switching to the new version of Blogger today and hope to begin posting by this evening. I pray you have had a safe and blessed Thanksgiving and Christmas with your families.

Happy Thanksgiving