<?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><?xml-stylesheet href="http://www.blogger.com/styles/atom.css" type="text/css"?><feed xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom' xmlns:openSearch='http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/' xmlns:georss='http://www.georss.org/georss' xmlns:gd='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005' xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6956535755700365299</id><updated>2011-07-08T11:56:19.710-04:00</updated><category term='abortion'/><category term='republicans'/><category term='death penalty'/><category term='public enemy'/><category term='infighting'/><category term='basic rights'/><category term='pro-life'/><category term='errol flynn'/><category term='barak obama'/><category term='conservatism'/><category term='politics'/><title type='text'>e.plenista</title><subtitle type='html'>we all want something simple. we want our country back.</subtitle><link rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#feed' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default?max-results=100'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/'/><link rel='hub' href='http://pubsubhubbub.appspot.com/'/><author><name>e.plenista</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><generator version='7.00' uri='http://www.blogger.com'>Blogger</generator><openSearch:totalResults>12</openSearch:totalResults><openSearch:startIndex>1</openSearch:startIndex><openSearch:itemsPerPage>100</openSearch:itemsPerPage><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6956535755700365299.post-8760281116352406913</id><published>2010-06-14T09:28:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2010-06-14T09:28:42.480-04:00</updated><title type='text'>Hey Bob? Packing your bags?</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href="http://eyeblast.tv/public/video.aspx?v=XdaGaGqGZu"&gt;Eyeblast.tv&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Wow! Watch this video. Talk about a party out of touch. See you in the funny papers, Bob!&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6956535755700365299-8760281116352406913?l=eplenista.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='related' href='http://eyeblast.tv/public/video.aspx?v=XdaGaGqGZu' title='Hey Bob? Packing your bags?'/><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/feeds/8760281116352406913/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6956535755700365299&amp;postID=8760281116352406913' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/8760281116352406913'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/8760281116352406913'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/2010/06/hey-bob-packing-your-bags.html' title='Hey Bob? Packing your bags?'/><author><name>e.plenista</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6956535755700365299.post-3135266703772808511</id><published>2009-03-05T07:00:00.000-05:00</published><updated>2009-03-05T08:38:39.666-05:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='barak obama'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='infighting'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='republicans'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='conservatism'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='politics'/><title type='text'>Levin v. Frum</title><content type='html'>Many of us learned the name David Frum last night on the &lt;a href="http://www.marklevinshow.com/"&gt;Mark Levin Show&lt;/a&gt;. Now we have his number, too. An exchange with Frum over his comments in an &lt;a href="http://tinyurl.com/bv8u8a"&gt;article&lt;/a&gt; concerning &lt;a href="http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/home/today.guest.html"&gt;Rush Limbaugh&lt;/a&gt; will doubtless cause the Alphabet News Media to declare "Division in the ranks of Conservatives", "Infighting on the Right" or some such non-sense.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight:bold;"&gt;Left Leaning Policy Wonk&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Let me set the record straight, here. David Frum is no Conservative. He is clearly the kind of Republican who helped Obama win in November. He comes from the left wing of Republican Party where it is better to be in the middle and be liked, than to stand for what is right.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight:bold;"&gt;Fuzzy Math&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Let's go through the math. Frum may write well enough but needs help with his math skills. Here is an analysis one might expect from someone like Frum... "well if there are 15%-20% of those on the right who will never change their minds and there are 15%-20% of those on the left who will never change their minds that leaves 60%-70% in the middle who can be persuaded. Bad math is one way to look at it. Fuzzy math is another. It's too bad that Frum has sought to ride on the coattails of Newt Gingrich's 70% solution but to then miss the point, entirely... that's sad.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight:bold;"&gt;The Color of Socialism&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Frum showed his cards not only in that his website, &lt;a href="http://newmajority.com/"&gt;NewMediocrity.com&lt;/a&gt; is covered with the orange color which typifies European Socialist Parties in but in that he is a product of Ivy Leaugue Liberalism. Look at his &lt;a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Frum"&gt;resume&lt;/a&gt;. Okay... I get it. Orange isn't either Red or Blue. Mr. Frum, please remember, it's a mixture of Red and YELLOW!&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;By all rights, Conservatism's true color is blue. Blue for the limitless possibilities symbolized by the boundless sky above. Blue for the color of blood pumping through the body as it's doing its job. Not that color we see when we're suffering from blood loss. The media gave us the color Red to hide the fact that they were, at the time, Pink. Not like Code Pink... but Pink as in "Pinko" a term for the few of you who don't know it, was used to describe pro-communist or communist leaning individuals during the Cold War. Unfortunately for them, red is the most powerful color in the spectrum. Since we're stuck with it, we may as well use it to beat them back.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight:bold;"&gt;The Founding&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The process of the left is to promote the most current idea and applaud at the novelty of it and impress it upon society. Mr. Frum, this is the process in which you're involved. Herding sheep is not what the men who blazed the trail for us in our founding had in mind. They studied John Locke and weighed the issues with great care. They realized the key to a stable and productive society lay as much in the protection afforded by the freedom of the individual as in the responsibility taken for their own actions and self intersest. They weren't trying to eek out a living in the margin of what the King left as table scraps. They had grown tired of those intrusions.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Policy for the sake of scoring points is no victory. Principle and its expression , expansion and the educating of it is the task at hand.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Please listen for yourselves with the links given above. Make up your own minds. We have to win this fight with a stance for what is right and not what seems like the best idea, right now.&lt;br /&gt; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;See you Tuesday November 3, 2009.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;-e.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6956535755700365299-3135266703772808511?l=eplenista.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/feeds/3135266703772808511/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6956535755700365299&amp;postID=3135266703772808511' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/3135266703772808511'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/3135266703772808511'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/2009/03/levin-v-frum.html' title='Levin v. Frum'/><author><name>e.plenista</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6956535755700365299.post-928629146406082841</id><published>2009-02-21T06:21:00.009-05:00</published><updated>2009-02-25T07:38:14.938-05:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='barak obama'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='public enemy'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='errol flynn'/><title type='text'>Robin' Hood</title><content type='html'>I woke up this morning with a picture in my head of Barak Obama's face Photoshop-ed onto a striking pose of Errol Flynn dressed in suitable camo for Sherwood Forest... green cape, brown shirt and cap. Take 1:55 to see America through the eyes of Barak Obama.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;object width="500" height="405"&gt;&lt;param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/imCBZQU8DEs&amp;hl=en&amp;fs=1&amp;rel=0&amp;border=1"&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"&gt;&lt;/param&gt;&lt;embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/imCBZQU8DEs&amp;hl=en&amp;fs=1&amp;rel=0&amp;border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="500" height="405"&gt;&lt;/embed&gt;&lt;/object&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Watching the trailer I had to hold back my laughter. It's not really that funny, though. The strange thing is that along with this image in my sleep was the soundtrack of the famous Rap group Public Enemy's recording, &lt;a href="http://www.amazon.com/Takes-Nation-Millions-Hold-Back/dp/B0000024K1"&gt;It Takes A Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back&lt;/a&gt;. &lt;span style="font-style:italic;"&gt;Prophets Of Rage&lt;/span&gt;, &lt;span style="font-style:italic;"&gt;Black Steel In The Hour Of Chaos&lt;/span&gt; and &lt;span style="font-style:italic;"&gt;Rebel With Out A Pause&lt;/span&gt; served as the soundtrack for the meeting of the future President and Michelle Robinson in 1989. Just to let you in to a piece of the past... you need to listen to this music. &lt;a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It_Takes_a_Nation_of_Millions_to_Hold_Us_Back"&gt;You need to know the kind of fuel that feeds this fire.&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Interspersed in between the tracks are recordings of &lt;a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Farrakhan"&gt;Louis Farrakhan&lt;/a&gt; (born Louis Eugene Walcott) and &lt;a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malcolm_X"&gt;Malcolm X&lt;/a&gt; (born Malcolm Little). Go check it out for yourself.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;See you Tuesday November 2nd, 2010&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;-e.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6956535755700365299-928629146406082841?l=eplenista.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/feeds/928629146406082841/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6956535755700365299&amp;postID=928629146406082841' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/928629146406082841'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/928629146406082841'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/2009/02/robin-hood.html' title='Robin&apos; Hood'/><author><name>e.plenista</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6956535755700365299.post-840908135319386067</id><published>2009-02-12T14:21:00.004-05:00</published><updated>2009-02-12T14:33:04.091-05:00</updated><title type='text'>4M Jobs Saved</title><content type='html'>The phrase, "create or save 4 million jobs" or more recently, "create or preserve 3.5 million jobs" is driving me to drink. So many Talk Show heavyweights have missed the point. Rush Limbaugh asks repeatedly and correctly, "How do you calculate how many jobs have been saved?" WMAL's Chris Plante asks similarly. You know the list of others...&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Let me set the record straight. Those 4 million jobs saved can only be the LAST 4 million jobs in America.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;See you Tuesday November 2nd, 2010&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;-e.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6956535755700365299-840908135319386067?l=eplenista.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/feeds/840908135319386067/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6956535755700365299&amp;postID=840908135319386067' title='1 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/840908135319386067'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/840908135319386067'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/2009/02/4m-jobs-saved.html' title='4M Jobs Saved'/><author><name>e.plenista</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>1</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6956535755700365299.post-132855484951616907</id><published>2009-02-03T05:58:00.007-05:00</published><updated>2009-02-03T07:34:36.830-05:00</updated><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='pro-life'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='death penalty'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='basic rights'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='politics'/><category scheme='http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#' term='abortion'/><title type='text'>Evolution to Pro-Life</title><content type='html'>My Pro-Life evolution continues. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Yesterday we received a mailer from Ken Cuccinelli who is running for Attorney General in the Commonwealth of Virginia. From an edited version of an email I sent to Mr. Cuccinelli...&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight:bold;"&gt;100% Pro-Life?&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;blockquote&gt;You proudly proclaim to be "100% Pro-Life" on one page of your recent mailer and yet on another you highlight on the facing page your record as a "Strong defender of Virginia's death penalty". Then later headlined with the title "Defend Human Life" you underline, "Human life is our most basic right, and it deserves protection from conception until natural death". My question is this... How do you hold these plainly contradictory beliefs? To explain... there's nothing natural about a life ending by Execution. Frankly, if someone has committed a crime so terrible the State would consider ending that persons life, is it worth the Millions of dollars from taxpayer contributions to put that person to death?&lt;/blockquote&gt; Even if we were to do so, what have we gained? With such a great cost, what opportunities have we lost?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight:bold;"&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Position Politics&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;While Ken Cuccinelli is pointed out in this instance, it's his mailer which illuminates a problem with Position Politics. Republicans and Democrats take up sides and over the course of debate have switched and traded sides as time has passed. One paints the other unfavorably with some brush and the electorate has to choose the lesser of the evils they are presented. A Pro-Life stance and a Pro-Death Penalty position are incompatible with each other if we're honest with ourselves. The Pro-Abortion and Anti-Death Penalty views held together are also incompatible, intellectually. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight:bold;"&gt;Intellectual Dishonesty&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;You have to hold simultaneously that the essence of innocence, life as it is beginning, is somehow less precious than a life which the State might seek to end because of egregious acts committed against others... that's if you are a party line Democrat. On the other hand, saving the innocent and executing the viciously guilty is not a Pro-Life stance. It is a Pro-Punishment position.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight:bold;"&gt;Name Calling&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Pro-Choice is anything but... Pro-Life is not necessarily.. Pro-Abortion isn't used much and isn't claimed by those who believe in it. But that goes just as well for Pro-Death.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;span style="font-weight:bold;"&gt;Summary&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;"100% Pro-Life" means all mankind, to me. I agree wholeheartedly with Candidate Cuccinelli when he stresses, "Human life is our most basic right, and it deserves protection from conception until natural death." He just doesn't seem to agree with himself.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Life without the possibility of Parole satisfies a Pro-Life stance as it assumes God knows better than Man and leaves the ultimate fate of the criminal up to Him.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;see you on Tuesday November 2nd, 2010.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;e.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6956535755700365299-132855484951616907?l=eplenista.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/feeds/132855484951616907/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6956535755700365299&amp;postID=132855484951616907' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/132855484951616907'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/132855484951616907'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/2009/02/evolution-to-pro-life.html' title='Evolution to Pro-Life'/><author><name>e.plenista</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6956535755700365299.post-3008533458818893885</id><published>2009-01-29T03:48:00.005-05:00</published><updated>2009-01-29T04:56:51.206-05:00</updated><title type='text'>From W to Orwell</title><content type='html'>On the Eighth day of the reign of Obama... &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Millions heard the back to back soundbites of the President on the Rush Limbaugh show yesterday. 20 days ago the theme from the lips of the President Elect was that only government can fix the problem... which raised hair on the backs of the necks of centrists and moderates who pulled the lever for the first black elected President. Not to mention the abject fear being realized by more conservative minded Americans. "Only Government..." means more Government. "Only Government" means higher taxes, greater inefficiency, more wasted time and expense of each dollar which is contributed by someones hard work.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Nearly three weeks later, "Only Government..." becomes "only the private sector...". Wellsprings of nostalgia came forth as the Reaganesque words reached the microphone, finally "Hope" for the rest of us. News of recent conversations between the House Minority Leaders and the President revealed the Presidents called for his version of a "Listening Tour" was nothing more than a snatch and grab robbery. Obama snatched the good will of the Republicans by asking for their opinions and ideas for "solutions that work" as he grabbed the language they used to describe the benefit from their perspective. Masterful? No... Orwellian.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;When pressed about tax cuts Obama told members of the House Minority, "we have a difference of opinion" and as he explained why he wouldn't be open to tax cuts the President replied,"we won." Fiction becomes Fact as President Obama comes to the podium later and talks about the expansion of government, the largest expenditures in history for a "stimulus" package a so called "Recovery Act" which even the Democrat held CBO says will only stimulate by 12 cents on the dollar and doesn't do even that right away. Fiction is now Fact when he speaks as if he were channeling Ronald Wilson Reagan.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;So what is the normal person to do who hears the 7 second clip about the "Recovery Act" when it sounds like it could have been penned by Reagan? "Hey Barb! This guy sounds pretty good after all." Barb yells into the den, "Don't forget to take your Soma, Bill." It is after all the "Hope" and "Change", the dawning of a &lt;a href="http://shop.ebay.com/items/_W0QQ_nkwZaldousQ20huxleyQ20braveQ20newQ20worldQQ_armrsZ1QQ_fromZQQ_mdoZ"&gt;Brave New World&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;see you on Tuesday November 2nd, 2010.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;e.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6956535755700365299-3008533458818893885?l=eplenista.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/feeds/3008533458818893885/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6956535755700365299&amp;postID=3008533458818893885' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/3008533458818893885'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/3008533458818893885'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/2009/01/from-w-to-orwell.html' title='From W to Orwell'/><author><name>e.plenista</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6956535755700365299.post-4562823810757325154</id><published>2009-01-21T09:12:00.003-05:00</published><updated>2009-01-21T09:16:40.728-05:00</updated><title type='text'>Post it Notes</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href="http://www.americanthinker.com/2009/01/conservatisms_dilemma_to_be_or.html"&gt;Great Post on the American Thinker by Larry Anderson&lt;/a&gt;. The comments section is also full of thoughtful responses. This is where we need to begin the conversation.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;e.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6956535755700365299-4562823810757325154?l=eplenista.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/feeds/4562823810757325154/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6956535755700365299&amp;postID=4562823810757325154' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/4562823810757325154'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/4562823810757325154'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/2009/01/post-it-notes.html' title='Post it Notes'/><author><name>e.plenista</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6956535755700365299.post-210431683220382619</id><published>2009-01-20T05:48:00.004-05:00</published><updated>2009-01-20T06:23:19.925-05:00</updated><title type='text'>Where Wheat Is Seperated From Chaff</title><content type='html'>Is your Senator or Congressman expressing your views in Washington DC? Try this... go to the American Conservative Union website where they rate the House and Senate members. The website is &lt;a href="http://www.acuratings.org/"&gt;acuratings.org&lt;/a&gt;. There are other sites which craft the statistics to meet their own criteria but the ACU site, as I find it, should serve you well. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Here's where we begin... we have to know where we are.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;e.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6956535755700365299-210431683220382619?l=eplenista.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/feeds/210431683220382619/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6956535755700365299&amp;postID=210431683220382619' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/210431683220382619'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/210431683220382619'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/2009/01/where-wheat-is-seperated-from-chaff.html' title='Where Wheat Is Seperated From Chaff'/><author><name>e.plenista</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6956535755700365299.post-6847212204392237218</id><published>2009-01-18T06:27:00.002-05:00</published><updated>2009-01-18T06:29:03.498-05:00</updated><title type='text'>Start Counting the Days</title><content type='html'>Okay... now I'm getting hot under the collar.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Everybody is out there already talking about 2012. So we want to muddle through for three years until it's time to elect a President? We choose to simply hand the keys to the kingdom to Obama/Pelosi/Reid ( OPR )? Really?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Remember 2010! All the seats in the House are up for re-election. A third of the Senate is up too. Remember that! Remember that each member of the House is looking at re-election... now! Now it's time we choose a new way. By the time the weakest and the laziest among them figures it out, they should be fighting for their lives in a primary race they can't hope to win... that's unless they get their minds Right. Convert or be Conquered.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Remember 1994.  The truth is that the Republicans had great leadership and that's saying something since the elected rank and file had hardly a dozen sturdy spines between them. So we have a model there. Nationalize the election. We have to start now. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;It's the Economy afterall! The Media will do what they can to prop up OPR and the Dems as best they can and look to blame anyone with an (R) in front of their name. The biggest target is likely to be Bush. 43 is the personification of Incompetence and the Evil in the modern era, in the 21st Century. But he'll be gone and like OBL will simply be the Boogyman in the shadows. The twists and turns to prop up OPR and the Dems should prove to be funny. I'll let others who consume their time with the daily reaction to the Media roll the tape. We can laugh as they do.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Remember that the Local and State elections show themselves to be a proving ground for the future. We have to win seats on every school board, city council, county board... every elected body in the nation. We have to figure out how to do so. In the meantime, we have to take back our schools from political correctness, liberal textbooks, and corrosive course study. We have to go to every meeting where these decisions take place in every voting district in the land.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The history of politics shows that Conservatives must make hay with the buyers remorse that is already setting in over the selection of the Democrat Party nominee. Barak Obama doesn't even have two years when you start to break down the logistics of the matter. First he has a transition to go through. Granted he seems well aware that he must be up and running come Jan 20, 2009 and seems as if he will be, also. And... to his credit, 43 seems to be making the transition as smooth as possible. In times as we face, an obstructionist program is ill advised. So kudos to the outgoing GWB.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;No seats can be safe this time. You may love your guy. Let's face it... everybody loves their own guy. But what has he done for the cause of Conservatism and the upholding of the Constitution. Time to hold all their feet to the fire by running good solidly Conservative opposition.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Remember... the House and a third of the Senate will have to start running after the Summer 2009 recess and by the Fall recess for the "safe" seats. This leaves conservatives a little bit of time. Only a little. With Primaries starting in the Summer/Fall of 2009, we need better candidates! So folks, I hope you enjoyed the Holidays but now it's time to get to work. We're looking at a long row we have to hoe.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Remember... these are TWO year cycles.&lt;br /&gt;two year cycles.... 2 yr cycles...&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;e.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6956535755700365299-6847212204392237218?l=eplenista.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/feeds/6847212204392237218/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6956535755700365299&amp;postID=6847212204392237218' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/6847212204392237218'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/6847212204392237218'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/2009/01/start-counting-days.html' title='Start Counting the Days'/><author><name>e.plenista</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6956535755700365299.post-3191258063014405223</id><published>2008-11-25T05:27:00.004-05:00</published><updated>2008-11-25T06:58:10.376-05:00</updated><title type='text'>Let Freedom Dream</title><content type='html'>"Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York." --Dr. Martin Luther King from his famous I Have a Dream speech.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;It's a difficult task to point out in a moment of joy over crossing a threshold many thought impossible in their lifetime, that the same racism beat back by the Nov 4th 2008 election will instead be enshrined by it. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;How could one remain unmoved at the tears of joy streaming down the face of Jesse Jackson at the acceptance speech of President-elect Obama in Chicago? The dream of racial equality crossed another hurdle and stands as a great marker in the history of this land. I am proud America has overcome race to the extent we have. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;We have not yet attained the high goal set by Dr. Martin Luther King in his famous I Have a Dream speech. We have not. There will for some long time be petty prejudices held by the lesser among us. We can not perfect ourselves and yet we can aspire to be much better.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The Ludlum Elementary School in the Hempstead Union Free School District of Long Island, NY is now called Barack Obama Elementary School. How does this redefine the wishes expressed in the dream of Dr. King?  It serves to enshrine racism. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;From the AP story which reports the renaming... &lt;span style="font-style:italic;"&gt;Officials for the Long Island district say they think the school is the country's first to be named after the first black president-elect, although similar efforts to rename schools, parks and streets are under way elsewhere.&lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Barack Obama is being honored for the color of his skin, not for the content of his character. It's just that simple. We have yet to see what the man is made of to determine how his character fares. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The office of President for which he will take an oath, Jan 20, 2009 will test him like no other. We can only wish him good luck and the good sense to follow the great guidance that God provides.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6956535755700365299-3191258063014405223?l=eplenista.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/feeds/3191258063014405223/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6956535755700365299&amp;postID=3191258063014405223' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/3191258063014405223'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/3191258063014405223'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/2008/11/let-freedom-dream.html' title='Let Freedom Dream'/><author><name>e.plenista</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6956535755700365299.post-8450107375584045334</id><published>2008-11-19T08:34:00.004-05:00</published><updated>2008-11-19T09:47:37.408-05:00</updated><title type='text'>Fresh Blood</title><content type='html'>Had the pleasure of meeting an Iraqi War vet, last night. We had shots of Bushmills over post-election talk and the role of Putin in the future. Great perspective. This guy had come to the USA in the 90's as an immigrant and since has served a couple tours in Iraq. When asked by a self described "moderate" lefty sitting nearby, which did he prefer, Russia or the USA?... he listed all the reasons he's here in America. Lefty didn't get it. He kept asking as if there were the chance this guy who'd fled Soviet style Communism might still long for it. Well you might have guessed as much from a Gore/Kerry/Obama supporter.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;For some time the role of immigrants like this proud soldier, especially from the former Soviet Union states has been on my mind. The newly freed are our best reminder of what we have come to take for granted. Or they can be. The sting of real oppression is fresh in their minds. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Our friend Lefty said he is a German-American. His family has been in the US for seven generations. When I pointed out to him that he was an American since he didn't speak German and parents and grand-parents didn't either he realized it was a long time since he considered himself as simply an American. That's really taking what you have for granted.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;I want to hear more of the voices of those who are recently freed from oppression. Next time you here an accent which seems unfamiliar, ask about that persons story. So many times you will be amazed at the lengths to which people will go just to have the chance at freedom. It will inspire you. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Remember to thank a Vet for having done that bold work.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6956535755700365299-8450107375584045334?l=eplenista.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/feeds/8450107375584045334/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6956535755700365299&amp;postID=8450107375584045334' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/8450107375584045334'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/8450107375584045334'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/2008/11/fresh-blood.html' title='Fresh Blood'/><author><name>e.plenista</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6956535755700365299.post-6468492653276570704</id><published>2008-03-11T02:32:00.001-04:00</published><updated>2008-03-11T09:37:11.250-04:00</updated><title type='text'>McCain v. Bozell</title><content type='html'>L. Brent Bozell III asks in this past Sunday's &lt;a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/07/AR2008030702845.html"&gt;Washington Post's Outlook Section&lt;/a&gt; after a balanced and even-handed history of the dissaffection of Conservatives from the Republican Party, "What should McCain do?"... and answers by saying, "McCain must... He needs to... He should... McCain could... Now he should..." Mr Bozell, what good comes from the "Should-a... Would-a... Could-a... mantra? Mr Bozell, do you think he's listening, now that he's got the nomination? Did he ever listen to Conservatives? &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;He did. And herein lies the Key to getting him to listen to us, again.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Sen. John McCain is out of money. The Conservative base is in no hurry to sit down and write a check to McCain, "who arguably least qualifies as a Reagan conservative" as Bozell writes in his &lt;a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/07/AR2008030702845.html"&gt;WaPo Op-Ed, From the Right, He Looks Too Blue&lt;/a&gt;. No matter what he "should do", he won't as long as the Money he tried "to get out of politics", keeps coming in. We have an advantage here and can use it to advance the Conservative Movement. John McCain will do OUR bidding if we press him to do so. If we press him to do so in the right way.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;During our successful fight to stop Illegal Immigration and the Amnesty Act of 2007 known as McCain-Kennedy I came up with an idea to press home the point that WE pull the purse strings on any run for any office in the land. Never has that fact been more important than today. If we are to take advantage of the time granted to us by the Limbaugh Effect and the ensuing chaos in the Democratic Party brought on by Rush Limbaugh, we have to act now, before the Republican Party faithful get in line and sit down to write checks to Sen. John McCain. Don't forget...he's out of money.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;So here's what WE do... WE write a friendly note to Sen. John McCain and with it, include a voided check in the amount that you would normally donate to his campaign. Since you're going to write VOID across the check, you could make it for the maximum amount allowed by Law, but that's up to you. The point will be made by sending the voided check. The note you include is key. Go straight down the list of issues you have as a Conservative which are being ignored by his campaign. Use Mr. Bozell's excellent piece as a starting point. Check out &lt;a href="http://voidsupport.blogspot.com/"&gt;Void $upport&lt;/a&gt; for progress on this front in the coming months.&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Let's remember, McCain is a Senator and compromise is his business. We got his mind right on Amnesty for Illegals because he took a beating in contributions for being on the wrong side of the issue. Just think... you can press the point home as we did with all those bricks sent to Washington to build the fence... but without all that extra postage.&lt;div class="blogger-post-footer"&gt;&lt;img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6956535755700365299-6468492653276570704?l=eplenista.blogspot.com' alt='' /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/feeds/6468492653276570704/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=6956535755700365299&amp;postID=6468492653276570704' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/6468492653276570704'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/6956535755700365299/posts/default/6468492653276570704'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://eplenista.blogspot.com/2008/03/mccain-v-bozell.html' title='McCain v. Bozell'/><author><name>e.plenista</name><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='16' height='16' src='http://img2.blogblog.com/img/b16-rounded.gif'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry></feed>
