Ah, this is interesting.

Giuliani is flashing his "I was New York Mayor during 9/11" credentials to convince voters that Dems won't keep this country safe.

Here's a quote from this piece:

“I listen a little to the Democrats and if one of them gets elected, we are going on defense,” Giuliani continued. “We will wave the white flag on Iraq. We will cut back on the Patriot Act, electronic surveillance, interrogation and we will be back to our pre-Sept. 11 attitude of defense.”

He added: “The Democrats do not understand the full nature and scope of the terrorist war against us.”

After his speech to the Rockingham County Lincoln Day Dinner, I asked him about his statements and Giuliani said flatly: “America will be safer with a Republican president.”
- Giuliani warns of 'new 9/11' if Dems win

In a response, the DNC communications director Karen Finney had this to say:

"How can the man who failed to prepare NYC for a second attack after the first one, quit the 9/11 commission because he was too busy raking in money from sketchy business deals, can't assess if the surge is working or if Iran and North Korea have nuclear weapons claim that he will keep America safe?"
- Giuliani 9/11 remark draws angry reply

Although I'm not for Giuliani as a Republican president (see his stance on gun control), I thought the remarks from Ms. Finney were completely ungrounded. I'll break down the quote above.

First, "How can the man who failed to prepare NYC for a second attack after the first one..."

The attacks on the Twin Towers were failures of national defense, not that of NYC. The terrorists didn't plan in NYC, they didn't arm themselves in NYC, and they didn't begin their final day in NYC. The terrorists high jacked planes from other cities and flew them into the World Trade Center buildings. How are you supposed to stop that when only the destination has to do with your city???

Second, "too busy raking in money from sketchy business deals..."

What sketchy business deals? Why is it always "sketchy" when a Republican engages in business? Isn't our nation grounded in the principles of free market economics?

Third, "can't assess if the surge is working..."

The surge has just begun and the Democrat controlled House and Senate won't fund it. Last I checked Giuliani is a private citizen. Just exactly what means does he have to assess something which has no data available to it and is sabotaged by the liberals?

Fourth, "can't assess... if Iran and North Korea have nuclear weapons claim..."

Isn't this the purview of the UN and IAEA? I also thought we detected a sub kiloton explosion last year from North Korea? We know both N.K. and Iran kicked out international inspectors. We know that both have centrifuges and are actively enriching uranium. This is information that both countries have boasted.

When I read the first article on Giuliani my opinion was "Well, here we go from the Right, time to pander to conservatives on national security". The article didn't warrant any analysis from me. The response from the DNC, however, got under my skin due to the blatant ignorance of the paragraph I've just analyzed. It made no sense to me and I thought I would share the frustration with you.

What are the odds of dying? 1:1. Death is inevitable, but how will you go? National Geo had a graphic that displays the common reasons for death. I came across the graphic at the National Safety Council's website. If you surf over to their site the statistics are displayed in a tabular format as well.

Scott Adams has a rather funny blog post today.

It's easy to appreciate what he's saying if you don't get wrapped up in taking a political side. I think he's stepped back here and pretty much wrapped up where we are at today with politicians and our government.

For some background, Scott often reminds his readers that he doesn't vote and doesn't stand for one party or another. His opinions on politics are usually clever, when he shares them. This is no exception.

I Wish I Had a Government

By Scott_Adams on General Nonsense

I’m so jealous of countries that have governments. How cool would that be?

Many years ago, the United States had a government that did impressive things such as winning wars, spreading democracy, and solving huge social issues. In time, it turned into a government that was good at getting blown and tattling. Then we had a government that was too incompetent to do even that. Now we no longer have a functioning government of any kind. The good news is that we seem to have reached a plateau.

Recently our so-called Speaker of the House was meeting with the Syrian government while our so-called Vice President was on Rush Limbaugh’s radio show reminding the world that the so-called Speaker of the House doesn’t speak for the United States in foreign policy. Foreign policy is the job of the so-called President who doesn’t speak to governments that don’t already agree with him.

Today I read that the Defense Department is releasing a report that there was no link between al-Qaeda and Iraq, at the same time that so-called Vice President Cheney was repeating his mantra that there was indeed a link. My tax dollars paid for all of that. I don’t think I got my money’s worth.

Meanwhile, the Democrats are poised for a big win during the next election based on their excellent track record of doing nothing for years. Doing nothing might not sound like a good strategy to you, but if you compare it to what happens when the government actually does something, you can make an argument.

A good test of whether you have a government is this: Can your country do anything big and important? For example, could the United States start a new war, or end an existing one, or change its dependence on foreign oil, or provide health care to all citizens? Apparently not.

At this point, the so-called government does little more than provide content for news channels and blogs. I think they should do more. For example, I’d like to see Congressmen and Congresswomen run across a field of rakes every morning to get to work. For me, it would only take a few rakes in the face per day to make me feel as if my tax dollars weren’t a complete waste.

Is that too much to ask?

I thought the political cartoon by Nick Anderson today in the Houston Chronicle was worth sharing.

Great news for CHL holders in Texas. From the NRA-ILA.

Texas Governor Signs Critical Self-Defense Reform Bill! On Tuesday, March 27, Governor Rick Perry (R) signed Senate Bill 378, NRA-supported "Castle Doctrine" legislation. Governor Perry's signature made Texas the first state to adopt "Castle Doctrine" legislation in 2007! SB 378 will protect individuals who use force to defend themselves in their home, car and place of business or employment from criminal prosecution and civil lawsuits. It also states that you have no "duty to retreat" from an attack if you are in a place where you have a legal right to be, if you did not provoke your attacker, and if you are not engaged in criminal activity yourself.

Update on Texas Workers Protection Legislation! Three NRA-supported bills are moving through the Texas legislature: House Bill 220, sponsored by State Representative Phil King (R-61), House Bill 992, sponsored by State Representative Patrick Rose (D-45) and Senate Bill 534 sponsored by State Senator Glenn Hegar (R-18). Both HB220 and HB992 are currently in the Calendars Committee. SB534 passed unanimously in the Senate on Thursday, March 29 and now heads to the House for consideration. All three bills would allow Concealed Handgun Licensees to transport and store handguns in their locked, private motor vehicles while parked on their employer's property. HB992 and SB534 also provide employers with protection from civil liability for the unforeseeable acts of criminals. Unfortunately, some in the business community are opposing these bills. Please contact your State Representative and respectfully urge him or her to support HB220, HB992, and SB534. Contact information for your State Representative can be found at http://www.house.state.tx.us/members/welcome.php.

Twitter is an interesting company with a simple technology. I first read about it in a blog post from The Economist.

The Wikipedia entry for Twitter describes as:

Twitter is a social networking service that allows members to inform each other about what they are doing and what they think. It allows users to send messages via phone, instant messaging or the Twitter website. Two SMS gateway numbers are available - one for USA, and one UK number for international use. Users can receive updates from other selected users via web, IM, or SMS.

I signed up on the site and invited a bunch of friends, who so far haven't joined. I was able to add Google News as a friend.

I'm still new to Twitter and microblogging, so I have no opinion so far on it. The concept is interesting, though.

On the sidebar of my blog I've added an area titled "What am I doing?" Every time I send a text message to Twitter and the page is refreshed, the text message will be displayed. There is also a link to my Twitter page.

One of the Economist's blogs, Democracy in America, found this Chinese report:"The Human Rights Record of the United States in 2006". I really don't know where to begin on this. Seriously, though, are we going to listen to China on Human Rights? Get real.

Here's what the Economist blog had to say:

CHINA has just published its report on "The Human Rights Record of the United States in 2006". And, believe it or not, you really do have to read it. It's an amazing piece of propaganda, diligently assembled from published sources, which achieves exactly its intended purpose: of making you wonder whether the State Department is any "fairer" or "more balanced" when it publishes its own country reports on human rights overseas. Thanks to CFR for the reference.

I only read through the first page, and then in disgust I stopped. Here's a quote from the "report":

The United States has the largest number of privately owned guns in the world. The unchecked spread of guns has caused incessant murders.

At least the murders were citizen on citizen and not government imposed! There are few better examples of a Second Amendment Right than China.

Having forgone the means with which to defend one's self, What tyranny must one endure? I don't think I'll never know.

The Federal Appeals Court reversed the District Court's up holding of the DC hand gun ban.

This is great news for the law abiding citizens of the District of Columbia.

From the decision:

Silberman, Senior Circuit Judge: Appellants contest the district court's dismissal of their complaint alleging that the District of Columbia's gun control laws violate their Second Amendment rights. The court held that the Second Amendment ("A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the seurity of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed") does not bestow any rights on individuals except, perhaps, when an individual serves in an organized militia such as today's National Guard. We reverse.

You can read the entire decision here: United States Court of Appeals (For the District of Columbia Circuit) Decision No. 04-7041

A Duke University engineering graduate built himself a prototype beer launcher.

Recent College Graduate Invents Beer-Tossing Refrigerator

It took the 22-year-old Cornwell about 150 hours and $400 in parts to modify a mini-fridge common to many college dorm rooms into the beer-tossing contraption, which can launch 10 cans of beer from its magazine before needing a reload.

A video can be seen here: Beer Launching Fridge Catapults Those Brewskis Right Into Your Hands

I was reading an article titled Geico's Cavemen Evolve and I found the following quote rife with buzzwords:

"This is absolute proof of the real engagement that the characters and brand have managed to create," said Robert Passikoff, founder and president of Brand Keys. "You can't make this kind of transition without a lot of engagement power behind you."

Naturally being curious about Dr. Robert Passikoff's company, Brand Keys, I headed over to the website to find out if it, too, was littered with buzzwords.

As I suspected, it was.

I've taken a series of buzzwords from the "Who We Are" section of the Brand Keys website:

By understanding what keeps your customers loyal you can:

• Plan within a leading indicator of profitability.
• Know how to most efficiently sequence initiatives.
• Fight commoditization.
• Leverage competitive strategies to your advantage.
• Enhance your brand's equity.

Leveraging Loyalty: the last frontier.

Why do we say customer loyalty is the only thing left to talk about? Because after right-sizing, best-practicing, and reengineering — that is, after the changes of the '80s and '90s — many companies today are doing a great job…and are in danger of seeing their brands become excellent, undifferentiated commodities.

These buzzwords are trite and ambiguous. Often language like this is used to mask ignorance or to feign an elite status. Either way, I can't stand the abuse on the English language. I will continue to blog about examples time and again.