Libby Commutation

President Bush has issued Lewis Scooter Libby a commutation of his 30 month prison sentence, while leaving in place the $250,000.00 fine, and his probation. Those on the left are screaming that this is somehow a miscarriage of justice and we even have the likes of a liar, Joseph Wilson, calling for an investigation into the Presidents actions.

I hate to break the news to Mr. Wilson, but the Presidents ability to grant a pardon, commutation of a sentence is granted under Article II, Section 2 of the United States Constitution and there is no authority to reverse such action. His decision in these matters is absolute. Congress can whine, they can dance, they can scream, they can hollar, hell they can hold hearings from now until doomsday and the fact of the matter is it will not change the Libby Commutation one iota.

President Bush has issued far fewer pardons and commutations than any President in history; we can compare that to the 456 that President Clinton issued, a vast majority of them during his last days in office. Jimmy Carter issued over 500 pardons and commutations, and let us not forget the king of Democrats, Franklin D. Roosevelt who issued an overwhelming 3,687 pardons and commutations during his terms in office.

We can contrast this with the 77 issued by George H. W. Bush and the 406 by Ronald Reagan.

Its a common practice for Presidents to issue pardons and commutations, and to call this anything more is just playing politics.

It seems the Democrats are forgetting history, is that just a lapse in memory or convenience?

See ya!

I was not going to comment on the Rosie/Elizabeth flap that occured this week, primarily due to the fact I have never watched the view and will not for reasons that are just not important; however, I changed my mind. I have only one thing to say about Rosie leaving the view:


"Hey Rosie, don't let the door hit ya in that big fat ass of yours on the way out!"

I do not like Donald Trump, he is an egotistical, pompus ass but when it comes to Rosie, he was dead on the mark!

Now, that is the last word I will utter on that tub.

Nellie does it again

Don Nelson has done it again, pulled a rabbit out of his hat and made magic with an NBA team. He did it in Milwaukee with the Bucks, he did it at Golden State in the early 90's, he did it with Dallas and to top it off, he did it a second time around with Golden State by thumping the Dallas Mavericks in 6 games.

It is no secret that Nellie and Mark Cuban, the Mavericks owner, are not on speaking terms; apparently Nelson believes that Cuban still owes him several million dollars when he served as Vice President/General Manager/Coach of the Mavericks and suprise, suprise Cuban does not agree. I am sure there was a certain amount of satisfaction for Nellie in putting Cuban's team to rest for the season by an 8th seeded team.

Cuban displayed a very childish attitude throughout the series, especially after game one when he pushed off a Warrior player that accidently bumped into him.

Congralutions Nellie, if anyone deserves it more than Mark Cuban losing, you do in being the coach putting it to him.

Hey Mark, bet you regret letting the general get away this time eh?

Culture of Drinking, Driving and Drug Use

It should come as no suprise that mixing alcohol and vehicles is a dangerous combination. It should also come as no suprise that mixing drugs, alcohol and driving is a VERY dangerous combination; I would further suggest that when you have an organization that has had two players who at the time of their untimely death had drugs in their system (illegal drugs I might add) and a member of their staff who has also been charged with a DUI, there is an inherent problem within that organization.

Yes, I am talking about the St. Louis Cardinals baseball team.

Any other company who had two employees who at the time of their death had illegal drugs in their system, and where at least one of them was involved in a vehicle accident from which alcohol was a contributing factor, the wheel of justice would be grinding away to penalize them with enough force to turn granite into sand.

Darryl Kyle and Jock Hancock are both dead. That is a tragedy, what is even more tragic is the fact that they were both employed by the same company and they both had illegal drugs. What makes this entire sad episode even more horrendous is their immediate supervisor, Tony La Russa, has been charged with a DUI and apparently after each game the company provides their employees with all the beer then can consume.

If this were a trucking company, the Department of Transportation would have already taken steps to revoke their authority to operate, as they should.

I am sorry that Josh Hancock is dead, I am sorry that Darryl Kyle is dead; what I am not sorry about is calling this what it is - a horrendous crime. It is a crime that the Cardinals baseball team has cultivated a culture in which their employees operate as though they are above the law; a team that without any leadership, and a team that has destroyed what goodwill they acquired last year by winning the World Series.

Personally, I think the owner, Bill DeWitt, should be criminally charged for his apparent lack of control and inhibing of his personnel.

Jim Leach - It is time for you to go

Jim Leach,
Who apparently is more than just the news director at WMAY, has felled another employee, this time with the forcing out of Jack Davis. Leach first fired Brian and Kellie from the morning show on sister station WNNS and Davis is his latest victim.

I am not sure what Midwest Family Broadcasting is up to, but one thing is apparent, they have most assuredly decided that it is ok for a news reporter to engage in partisan politics and with a straight face will tell you that the reports objectivity has not been compromised. Yes, you heard it correctly, they are saying it with a straight face - or least Jim Leach is. Jim Leach has been one of the most partisan broadcaster I have ever come across; Jesse Jackson makes a more palatable argument than Leach.

I call on the executives at Midwest Family Broadcasting to put an end to this farce and fire Jim Leach immediately, he has so tainted his objectivity that he needs to go.

I won't be holding my breath though, his last name is very very fitting......

Glen Beck

I have always enjoyed watching Glen Beck and generally agree with most of what he says, that is until last night. It was difficult to sit there and watch his interview with Duane Chapman, at the point he called him a hero I came close to losing my lunch.

What is it with so many social conservatives crooning over this criminal? Those who support Chapman only seem to discuss the Luster matter and I will agree Luster got what he deserved, but calling a convited murderer a hero goes beyond the pale. Are we supposed to forget the 16 felony charges that have been levied against Chapman? Are we supposed to ignore his murder conviction?

Glen Beck has always supported law and order, yet I find it strange that he ignores the rules of law when it comes to Chapman; why is that Mr. Beck? What is it about this criminal that has you so enthralled?

Let us be clear about the facts here, Duane Chapman entered Mexico under false pretenses, he engaged in an activity that is illegal (bounty hunting) and then did what he arrests others for, he jumped bail. As Americans we get upset when someone flees this country and rightly demand their return to stand trial, but are we so better than everyone else that the rules do not apply to us?

Duane Chapman should be immediately and without delay be extradited to Mexico to stand trial for his actions, anything less would be a tragedy.

Jim Leach / Brian Pierce and Kelly Michaels

I cannot help but make one final comment on this matter, Mid-West Family Broadcasting.

Replacing Steve Parker with Jim Leach is like replacing a cast iron skillet with a tin plate and replacing Brian and Kellie with Parker is more akin to replacing a Ferrari with a beat up, rusted out 1978 Plymouth.

It is apparent to me that Mid-West Family Broadcasting is not willing to allow a divergent view point (aka Brians' recent post on his blog about the former First Lady) and although they legally have the right, they were wrong morally and we can only hope that in the end it hits them where it hurts the worst - in the pocketbook.

Good luck B&K, as always you will land squarely on your feet!

Brian and Kellie

It appears that the WNNS morning drive hosts, Brian and Kellie, were fired yesterday due to some comments that Brian made about former First Lady Hillary Clinton.

Although some would argue that free speech has been violated, the fact of the matter is employers can and do punish employees for comments they make that are not work related; that said, I know Brian and Kellie and personally feel this action is unjustified.

Let us look at the issue here, what he said was that Hillary had previously said she "loathed" the military. I have no absolute proof she said that, but for me actions speak louder than words; it has been clear that the Clintons have little use for the military and treated them with utter disdain.

Brian and Kellie had a large following, considering the size of Springfield and their morning show was always upbeat, positive and lively; unlike others such as Jim Leach that cannot get through an entire program without berating the President, Vice President or spewing his liberal BS out.

Oh, btw - guess who is now on WNNS in the afternoons? You guessed it! Jim "No Brain" Leach.

So much for Mid-West Family Broadcasting being above partisan politics.

Failed Appeal

Well it appears that Duane Chapman (Dog the Bounty Hunter) may soon be headed to Mexico to face charges that he was bounty hunting illegally in Mexico.

The second district court in Guadalajara has rejected Mr. Chapman's injunction request which will now clear the way to him to be extradited.

What can I say, if you can't do the time, don't do the crime. Duane Chapman knew that bounty hunting was illegal in Mexico and after being arrested what did he do? He ran, just like most other criminals; and did exactly what he chases down criminals for doing. So I ask you, what is the difference? Absolutely nothing!

Mr. Chapman argues that since bounty hunting is legal in the United States he should not be extradited; well that depends on where in the United States you are. As an example, it is illegal to operate as a bounty hunter in Kentucky, Illinois, Oregon, and Wisconsin.

There are 11 states which require a bounty hunter to be specifically licensed (which Mr. Chapman is not): Indiana, Nevada, Mississippi, South Dakota, Connecticut, Arizona, Utah, Iowa, Louisiana, California, and West Virginia.

Mr. Chapman is not permitted to act as a bounty hunter in the very state that he was convicted of murder in - namely Texas. I wonder why?

The bottom line is, Mr. Chapman left the United States and engaged in illegal activity in a foreign country and he should be held responsible for that action by sending him back to finally stand trial.

As he likes to say, nobody is above the law - well Mr. Chapman that includes YOU!

Duane Chapman again

It seems that trouble always seems to follow Duane Chapman. After having been arrested on a warrant from Mexico, Chapman is playing to the religious right in an effort to keep from being extradited back to face his charges. The problem is, it just might work!

Duane Chapman is a bounty hunter, and I ask you, what does a bounty hunter do? He tracks down those who have "JUMPED BAIL". This is exactly the same thing Duane Chapman did in Mexico....he was arrested on an illegal detention warrant for his illegal bounty hunting in Mexico (where it is illegal). As a matter of fact, bounty hunting is illegal in several states in the United States so its not just the Mexican government that does not like his tactics.

Duane Chapman knew it was illegal to operate as he was in Mexico and he did it anyway, why? Because he has a history of not following the law. He has been arrested 18 times for ARMED ROBBERY and was convicted for Accessory to Murder. I do not care how many or who he puts away, his contributions do not ever wipe that slate clean. You would think that after the first arrest he would have learned his lesson; ok, that's a bit much he should have learned after the second arrest.....still asking too much of the guy? Ok, he should have learned after the 10th arrest....still too much? How many times are we going to let this guy get arrested and still call him some kind of hero? Certainly not 18!

The bottom line is Duane Chapman broke the law, he skipped on his bond and should be immediately returned to Mexico to face the charges! He should have KNOWN BETTER considering what he does for living.

Calling Dr. Brock (Cont'd)

Have you ever started the day with what appears to be a simple question, and the answer prompts another two or three additional questions, a greater need to research the matter, which again prompts another round of questions and before you realize it has become an all day event?

That is what has happened today. After my discussion yesterday with my friend ( we will call her Martha - not her real name) I began to ponder the issue of divorce and religious service. As we all know our civil (government) courts in almost every state permit no fault divorce; which in essence allows one party to seek a termination of the marital status without the other party needing to agree.

What we are left with is a college that much to my suprise, not only refuses to employ faculty members who are divorced or married to someone who is divorced, but they also will not allow a divorced student or a student who is married to someone who is divorced to attend the college. I have seen some extreme interpretations but this one is certainly farreaching. It begged the question, "Do other colleges and universities of the same religious background hold the same type of dogmatic policy?"

So my quest began. I contacted Baptist Bible College in Springfield, MO. I spoke with the Deans office and with the academic affairs office to determine their policy and position. BBC is by no means a liberal Baptist college and anyone claiming such is either lying or greatly misinformed. Their policy is to review the circumstances and make a decision based upon the individual and do so in a private and respectful manner. They do ** NOT ** outright reject anyone on the basis of a divorce alone.

I then contacted Bob Jones University which took the same approach as BBC. Pilsbury Baptist Bible College again does not outright reject either faculty or students on the basis of divorce alone.

I have several other colleges that I plan to contact as well so that I can fairly evaluate this issue.

I still firmly believe that Dr. Brock and Maranatha have an obligation to disclose the basis for their policy. It is stated clearly on their website and in their applicaton process; therefore, it is a matter which is open to discussion - they made it that way by stating the policy openly.

I again call on Dr. Brock to provide the reasoning behind the policy openly and pubicly. No ridicule will come from me on the matter, and although I am sure I will have further comments to make afterwards (if he grants my wish) but I will in no way make it personal or attack the college directly. I may respectfully disagree and that will be that.

Calling Dr. Brock

Earlier today I was received a call from a close friend of mine who happens to be of the female persuasion, she is a fine upstanding member of her community, and has ** FIVE ** bachelor degrees not to mention two masters and a doctorate in microbiology. She is a atypical harvard graduate in that she is highly conservative and holds deeply rooted religious beliefs. She attends her local Baptist church regularly and for her that means about four trips a week. She teaches Sunday School, is the mother of four wonderful children all of whom attend the local Christian school.

When I sit back and think about her accomplishments, I cannot help but think that G-d has bestowed upon her a very large helping of blessings and abilities. She is one of the finest ladies I know. She has given very serious thought to moving to the upper midwest and would like to teach on the college level. Certainly she is more than qualified, and is, what I think most people would consider the quintessential definition of a moral and upstanding young lady (she is only 39). Yet, there is a problem.

One of the colleges she was considering applying to is Maranatha Baptist Bible College. When she was reviewing their website looking for information on any open positions and to whom she would need to forward her resume, she came across the following qualification:

• Faculty members must be fundamental Baptists by practice and conviction - Certainly meets this qualification
.

• Individual life styles must be in conformity to Biblical teaching related to morality and virtue - No issue on this one either
.

• The sanctity of the Christian home is guarded by never employing or retaining faculty or administrators who are or have ever been divorced - Here is the Problem!
.

She is divorced. Her husband left her and her children to fend for themselves and he initiated the divorce proceedings not her. She does not believe in divorce however her particular divorce was not of her own choosing, it was her husbands and with no fault divorce law she could not prevent the court from granting the divorce even if she had been so inclined.

I am saddened that a college of Maranantha's caliber which teaches forgiveness and that "sins" once forgiven are no more; can possibly conclude that she should be penalized for the rest ofher life for one singular mistake. It appears as though Maranantha believes that they are better than she is and that is something I truly detest.

Knowing that she would not be considered for a faculty position with them she gave up on the idea of actually presenting her credentials, she was hoping however, to gain an understanding why the college is so dogmatic on this particular issue. She sent a very polite and courteous email to Dr. John Brock, Vice President of Academic Affairs, for an explanation. Suprise suprise, no response. So she sent him a second email; again no response. She sent an email a third time and again after a week no response.

Dr. Brock will not even give her the courtesy of explaining the justification of the rule and on what biblical basis it was made.

It is this elitist attitude that makes my stomach churn. In absence of a response from Dr. Brock one can only make assumptions as to motives and I think everyone can agree that assumptions are generally incorrect, but as humans, we all make them.

Maranantha as a private college can set whatever standard they so desire for their faculty and students and I would never argue that they do not have that right - they do. I do believe that since they call themselves "Christians" and claim to to be forgiving and compassionate, they obligate themselves to at least explain their reasoning and allow someone to disagree as long as that disagreement is given politely and courteously.

Bob Jones University for many years prohibited their students from engaging in interracial dating; I disagreed completely with their standard, but I also acknowledged that as a private university where students attend by choice and with full knowledge ahead of time what the rules are, in regards to dating, they have the right to impose such a rule. in 2000, Dr. Bob Jones III, BJU Chancellor, acknowledged that the policy was not based upon any particular biblical principle and he was throwing the policy out. I applauded him for having the courage to take such action as it eliminated a contentious issue which took away from the universities excellent academic record.

So I call on Dr. Brock to step forward and explain the policy and what biblical basis it is supposedly based upon. If for no other purpose than to eliminate an issue which will take away from the Colleges excellent academic record.

Blagojevich's baby sitter sits on Civil Service Commission

Apparently Blago does not have enough legal and ethical questions on his plate, he now has the added issue of his babsitter sitting on the Civil Service Commission!

See the following Link for further details:

www.sj-r.com/extras/breaking/index.asp#1625

Madigan wins ruling

Lisa Madigan, who recently filed suit in federal court demanding that the Illinois Department of Transportation and an outside law firm turn over records regarding a pending suit won a ruling in court today.

Madigan who is the Attorney General for the State of Illinois, is the top attorney for the State of Illinois and its various agencies and who has the constitutional duty to represent them in any legal proceedings.

IDOT was wrong in their attempt to keep Madigan out of the matter. It was her office that hired the outside firm to start with, and it was her office that ultimately is responsible for the performance of that firm and the status of the case.

This really has more to do with the Governors office attempting to keep Madigan from discovering what appears as an illegal hiring practice implemented by the Governor. IDOT is being sued for wrongful terminations to allow room for politcal friends of the Governor to appointed in their positions.

There is no doubt that the hiring practices as they are currently implemented are in shambles and have become a disgrace to the State of Illinois. Blago ran on the issue of cleaning up state government yet, he has allowed the same illegal practices that he opposed under Ryan to continue unchecked for the past four years.

There is no doubt that with Lisa Madigan investigating the hiring practices she faces a potential conflict of interest here; and must tread lightly and carefully; but, considering her family I have no doubt that Lisa Madigan is well equipped to sidestep the various landmines she faces.

I am a Republican, and did not vote for Madigan. I probably would not vote for her in the future; that said, however, I do applaud her efforts her in seeing that the rule of law was upheld. It is now entirely her responsibility to properly defend the state and to ensure that nobody is wrongfully terminated.

Not an easy task to say the least, but it is one challenge that I truly believe Lisa Madigan is ready for.

Sheriff Neil Williamson Taking Heat

Sangamon County Sheriff, Neil Williamson is taking some strong heat since his son-in-law was arrested in the federal cocain ring investigation.

He has been painted with a pretty broad brush as if he had or has any control over what his son-in-law does. Granted, parents can and should be held responsible for what their children do, but when a child becomes an adult - they are on their own and no longer the responsibility of the parent.

Neil Williamson has done an outstanding job as sheriff and deserves better from the local media. Attempts to paint him in a bad light for something of which he had absolutely no control over is not just wrong, its morally corrupt reporting.

The sheriff has endured heat before and I have no doubt that he will endure this episode in time, I can only hope and suggest that the State Journal Register be honest with their reporting and not label a man for what someone else has done.

Democrats Crying Foul

Democrats are now crying foul over Senator Joe Lieberman's decision to run as an independent for this falls Connecticut general election.

It should come as no suprise to them, the Senator stated emphatically that barring Lamont trouncing him in the primary (which did not occur) he would be running an independent campaign. It was not a secret and he was honest about it. Now that he has been certified for the general election, Democrats are screaming.

Turn around is fair play, as the saying goes, and after some of their support in previous elections (John B. Andersons in 1980) along with their support of dead candidates, allowing candidates to drop out of a race and appoint a replacement in violation of state law (Minnesota, New Jersey) I find their hand wringing and crying foul to be hillarious.

The Senator stands a very good chance of upsetting their own nominee this fall (Lieberman is so far leading in the polls) with strong support from moderate to liberal Republicans. The Senator is an upstanding, honest, stand by his principles kind of guy and even though I am a die hard Republican, Joe Lieberman is the type of Democrat I can support.

A Rod Blagojevich he is not.

Foie Gras

Up until recently I had no clue what this delicacy was; that is until several animal rights nutties started their march through Chicago to have it banned from the menus.

As of today, it is now illegal in Chicago for any establishment to serve Foie Gras.

I am all for protecting animals from mistreatment, animals such as dogs, cats (which I am not a real big fan of) hamsters, etc. When I say mistreatment I am talking about abusing them for abuse sake. I am an avid bird hunter and make no apologies for walking out into the field, loading up a nice big twelve gauge shotgun and after the dog(s) point it out, to take aim and send feathers flying in all directions. I eat what I shoot and I enjoy every single bite.

As for Foie Gras, I am not a fan of liver and it makes little difference on whether its chicken, beef, or some other bird; but in protest of this lunacy, I actually had it for lunch today and I will admit it T-A-S-T-E-D G-R-E-A-T!

I would like to thank all the animal rights nuts for pointing this dish out to me.....I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Calvary Temple Public Works Meeting

Well tonight was the night for Calvary Temple and their final meeting with Public Works. In essence what they are asking for is a zoning variance to allow them to build R-1 homes along the Eastern edge of South 2nd Street, North of I-72 and due South of Southern View Village.

According to the church they plan on building single family homes and their church in this area. Now when I say single family homes, I am not referring to their IDA plan which does include low income housing subsidies. They apparently are saving that one for a later date.

Now, before I go any further I believe I have an obligation to let everyone know that I have a vested interest in this proceeding. I am a resident of the Timberline Trail Subdivision and also happen to be the President of the Homeowners Association. I never considered it before so I apologize for not making that clear earlier.

The problem with this developmentn has been how Calvary and their engineers will handle the watershed as the runoff water moves South, under I-72 and along side of Timberline. One change they have made is to construct a water retention pond along the East edge of their property and they believe that by controlling the amount of water that is discharged from this retention pond, they will not adversely impact the existing retention pond and homes that sit along the Nothern edge of Timberline.

Tomorrow Phil Marten with Marten Engineering will be reviewing the valves and natural drainage to the east of the subdivision to ensure the Board of Directors that whatever water is released will not find its way into the already existing retention areas. If that is the case, it would appear at this juncture that the HOA would reconsider its decision to oppose the development.

More to follow in the coming days.

Hat Tip to Capitol Blog

The Capitol Fax Blog picked up my comments regarding the recent State Journal Register article regarding a neighbor who apparently shot a dog which then deteriorated into what was a blatant anti-semitic rant. The State Journal Register claims that it screens all comments prior to posting them but that (as we hunters like to say) dog just won't hunt. I would like to thank the Capitol Blog for the hat tip and I respectfully give them one in return. This is a good blog with excellent sources of information and although I do not always agree with the editorials, I respect the editors enormously.


[Follow up to original article]

After writing my article, I dropped an email to the reporter who wrote the article and explained my disappointment in the papers decision to allow those posts, and after a few days I finally received a response. I have yet to send a follow up email, as I know it will do little good other than make myself feel better, but alas I do plan on following up with her tomorrow.

Here is the response in its entirety:

Thank you for bringing your concerns to my attention. I apologize for mydelayed response as I was out of the office on Thursday and Friday withoutaccess to my email account.

I am very sorry to learn how offensive you found some of the remarks on themessage board accompanying my story. I, along with all of our reporters, donot see or approve comments before they are posted. The newspaper's onlineeditor Jason Piscia and other editors are responsible for the screeningprocess with the message boards. I have forwarded you email to him, and heis aware of your concerns.

Please let me know if I can be of further assistance.

Thank you,

I did appreciate the response from Amanda Reavy and I am sure she was being honest with her comments; what bothered me the most is that it was an editor who was approving these comments and apparently they did not find them the least bit offensive. Maybe it was an overreaction on my part and yes I will admit that at times I can be a tad bit sensitive to such comments, but when a newspaper claims to screen reader comments to avoid such remarks and then allows then it calls into question their motives and honor.

Calvary Temple to appear before Public Works

It appears that the joint low-income housing / church facilities that Calvary Temple has been pushing for this past year will finally receive a final hearing before the Public Works Committee on Monday, August 21, 2006 at 5:00pm.

Over the past year Calvary has been pushing for approval of their plans to construct approximately 75 low income houses on their property bordering South 2nd street in Springfield and Southern View. Up to this point the entire project (including construction of their new church facility) has been tied up in committee with Mark Mahoney not pushing to have it brought forward.

Southern View has opposed it all along for several reasons, one being the watershed that would invariably effect them to the north. In addition, these homes are touted as homes worth more than a hundred thousand apiece and with the average Southern View home in the forty to 70 thousand range they are rightly concerned about their property taxes increasing substantially.

Appearing as a sleeping giant is the Trevi Garden and Timberline Trail subdivisions directly to the south. Trevi has an average home value of approximately one hundred and twenty thousand and Timberline Trail with an average of one hundred and fifty thousand, they have almost three hundred homeowners lining up behind them. They have also opposed the Calvary plans for the same watershed issues but on the property tax side it is for the opposite reason as Southern View. They have a considerable investment already in their homes, neighborhoods, and associations and any construction that would devalue those properties are going to lead to some potential legal action.

The Timberline Trail Homeowners Association Board of Directors has already met and voted to oppose any development by Calvary Temple that would lead to any increase in water transferred south of Interstate 72 in their direction. They have also voted to oppose any development of homes which would involve the construction of homes that would sell for less than $150,000.

It will be interesting to see how this develops tomorrow evening and with two separate City Council members (Mark Mahoney represents Southern View and Frank Edwards represents Trevi and Timberline Trail) each taking up their respective sides it could prove interesting.