I'm Baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack

Due to circumstances beyond my control, I have been unable to post for quite a while. Some would say it has been pleasant without my presence :) Others would say I was never missed; regardless, I am back and fired up!

With the battle between B. Obama and H. Clinton still going on strong, despite Obama's desire for her to quit and his attempts to relegate her to the line of hasbeens, there will be plenty of ammo for those on the right, and with John McCain the presumptive nominee, we have the unique position of ripping the Dems apart and shooting ourselves in the foot at the same time.

It will be a fun summer!

It saddens me to say this

but I believe the time has come for Illini coach, Bruce Weber to go. Make no mistake about it, Bruce Weber is an excellent coach, probably one of the top five coaches in the nation and if his only responsibility was in taking a young group of players and turning them into a championship team, Weber would be the Illini's coach for life.

However, we all know there is more to collegiate coaching than just "coaching". He is also responsible for recruiting top quality player to the university and on a scale of 1 to 10 Weber would score a -5. His recruiting has been dismal at best and I see no improvement long term.

It was no fluke that Illinois made it to the finals in 2005, he took a bunch of kids who were good players and molded them into a TEAM that was OUTSTANDING. Weber made that team what it was. Bill Self recruited the players, but Weber made those players a team. It seemed that with the success of 2005, Illinois had finally reached the pinacle of collegiate success yet since that time Weber has been unable to recruit a single top player in the country.

Weber recruited assistant coach Tracy Webster in hopes that he would be able to tap into the Chicago talent and in losing him to Kentucky on Friday, he has also lost Darius Miller, who committed to Kentucky on Friday.

I like Weber, I liked him when he was at Southern and will probably always like him but I am no different than the thousands of other Illini fans who after tasting success want more of it. I have no problem waiting a couple of years for success but when a coach has shown that he possesses no ability to recruit top flight talent, I am left with little choice but to call for his replacement.

The success we enjoyed in 2005 could not have been accomplished by any other coach and Weber is to be commended for that, however, one appearance in the finals is not enough to ensure a coach a life long position and with that I have finally, reluctantly I might add, joined the chorus of fans that are now calling for Weber to be replaced.

New links

I have added a few new links:

1. Jewish Republican Coalition.

2. Illinois Review (A good conservative website).

3. Fred Thompson Campaign website.

The links are in addition to the Backyard Conservative, and GOP Bloggers; both of which are excellent conservative blogs.

Enjoy,

D.W.

Interesting statistic

It has been 9, 553 days since Ken McElroy was murdered in downtown Skidmore, MO in front of 25+ people in broad daylight and nobody has been indicted, tried or convicted for the murder.

The American Justice system at its finest.

Sentences, Bond Amounts and disparity in the Justice System

I am sure that I am not the only one that has noticed the disparity in the justice system in Illinois.

If one is charged with a crime in Morgan County, the odds of you receiving a low bond amount are nill; yet the same crime in Chicago, Rockford, or Peoria will only cost you a few hours until the bond can be posted.

If you are convicted in Sangamon County you will on average receive a sentence that is 50% longer than if you were convicted in Cook or Winnebago County.

I do not advocate the lowering of bond amounts or sentences, what I do advocate for is a justice system that is fair and uniform throughout the entire state, instead of this huge difference between the various counties and cities. Allowing a hang 'em high judge to unduly punish a person is no more acceptable than a french bread judge that is afraid of ruining some kid for life.

If the State of Illinois adopted a uniform sentencing and bonding plan, there would be far less dissatisfaction with the general public.

Thompson - His Race to Lose

Senator Fred Dalton Thompson is a conservative, much to the chagrin of the Los Angeles and New York Times. It is important to note that when a newspaper attacks a candidate (which both of these have done with Thompson) it is for only two possible reasons: 1. they are attempting to sell more papers, or 2. they are scared of the candidate. It does not take a Nuclear Engineer to determine which is the case here.





Thompson has a down home likeability to him however more importantly he has a shoot-straight personna that many have compared to President Ronald Reagan and that voters have a tendency to migrate towards. He is well spoken and has a voice that is very easy to listen to.

The leading Republican candidates: Mitt Romney, Rudy Giuliani, and John McCain all face the troubling prospect of losing support almost immediately.

Mitt Romney will lose the conservative voters who are not ready for a Mormom to be elected President and the social conservatives who do not believe Romney has a strong enough history to be trusted with the nations highest office.

Giuliani will lose the social conservatives that believe in a strong defense but are wary of Giuliani on the social front.

John McCain - He is one presss conference away from pulling out of this race. McCain wanted to be annointed the heir apparent, but the new breed of Republican voters are no longer willing to entrust the nations highest office to someone just for party loyalty....you need to stand for something, and John McCain has flipflopped one time to many for a lot of them.

This is Thompsons race to lose.....the real question is, will he?

Planning a run for Mayor?

It has been brought to my attention recently that Ward 1 Alderman, Frank Edwards, is laying the groundwork now for a possible mayoral bid in 3 1/2 years. Despite having the ability to run for what would be a guaranteed reelection as alderman (Edwards could serve one more term beyond his current term), it appears that he has his sights set a little higher.

Could Frank be planning a jump to Mayor and then onto the Governors mansion?

Thoughts from the Deck

I was sitting on my deck late last night and was pondering about the state of politics today. Idaho Senator Larry Craig is in deep trouble; and maybe the Republicans in the Senate have returned to their roots. Despite the protestations to the contrary, Craig plead guilty to engaging in what I will call unsavory behaviour. If you believe him, and I do not, he was not smart enough to hire an attorney to handle the matter for him; instead, he plead guilty in hopes that it would just all go away.

I would consider Craig a man of reasonable intelligence and as any man with a reasonable amount of brain would tell you - YOU NEVER HANDLE A LEGAL MATTER WITHOUT CONSULTING WITH AN ATTORNEY - and you do not plead guilty to a crime you did not commit. Craig of all people should have realized that sooner or later the story was going to break and it would spin endlessly out of control.

The Senator has two-stepped this issue faster than a 20 year old couple on a Country & Western dance floor.

Of course that also brings us to the Republican leadership, who almost immediately asked the Ethics Committee to open an investigation into his actions and determine if any Senate Rules have been violated. They moved a few nano-seconds shy of the speed of light in doing so, which of course was the RIGHT thing to do. Now, there are distant calls from within the Republican Party for Craig to resign.

Now that I am thinking about it, Craig is not a man of reasonable intelligence, if he were he would have first not engaged in the behaviour, second he would have hired an attorney immediately, and third he would have already resigned.

Two hats off for the Republican Leadership and a pair of dirty trousers for the Senator.

-------

I find it amusing that when a Democratic fundraiser is accused of malfeasance, there is one excuse after another from the left (as has been the case with Norman Hsu - a fundraiser for the Clinton campaign) yet let even a moderate Republican be caught up in a mess like this and the Democrats pull out the rope and call for a 1880's hanging.

I am a Republican through and through, and make no apologies for that; but I also call 'em like I see 'em and when a Republican engages in behaviour that I believe is detrimental to the party or country I call for them to go; likewise when someone accepts contributions from a thief who is on the run, I call on them to return every dime immediately.

So, Senator Craig - I call upon you to resign your seat immediately and Hillary I call upon you to return every dime you have received from Hsu.

I will not bet the mortgage that either will listen to me.

Governor goes to Court

This almost feels like a nightmare. The Gov really does think he is G-d and has the right to do whatever he wants, whenever he wants and for whatever purpose he wants. Instead of actually sitting down and working with the House and Senate to craft a budget that all could agree to, he throws temper tantrums, calls people names, and basically acts like a three year old.

Hot Rod is hot under the collar, and for what? Because Mike Madigan ran the House as he saw fit, which by the way - as Speaker of the House he has the right to do, and without consulting the Governor on each step.

It is a well defined matter of law that the Speaker of the House sets the agenda and the time it is in session, not the Governor; however, that matters little to the Gov, he wants total control.

We are in for a fun summer as these two square off in court over who has the authority to actually set the times of the House sessions and whether or not the Governor has the authority to redistribute budgetary money for purposes not included in the budget.

Watch closely, the punches and body blocks are just beginning.

Correction on Gonzales

Apparently my facts were a bit off in the post about Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. He has officially resigned as Attorney General but will not be stepping down until September 17th.

I am not suprised by the news, Gonzales was being dogged by the Democrats at every turn, despite the fact that they have not uncovered any illegal activity on the part of the AG; what I am suprised with, is that he held out this long.

Congress has become like a part of my family, Packer fans who on Monday morning talk and act as though they could always do a better job than the current staff. Unfortunately we will have to endure another year and a half of partisan investigations that in the end will produce nothing; Gonzales though, will be able to sit back and smile knowing that he will no longer have to put up with the moronic diabtribes of 535 wannabes.

Gonzales said to have resigned

The word out of Washington this morning is that Attorney General Gonzales has officially resigned as Attorney General.

His resignation is said to be effectively immediately.

More to follow I am sure.......

Davlin a "MINI" Thompson?

Anne with an "E"'s father compared Springfield Mayor Tim Davlin to former Governor Jim Thompson this morning; going to far as to compare him to Jim Thompson.

I just about fell off my chair. Davlin may be charismatic, he may even be likeable, but this comparison borders on the insane.

I kow Jim Thompson, Jim Thompson is a friend of mine, and Tim, you are NO JIM THOMPSON.

Thompson knew how to work with the legislature, you have not been able to work with a single Republican on the city council.

Thompson knew how to get things done, you have not had a single one of your own initiatives pass.

Anne with an "E"'s father needs to pay more attention to the details before making such a laughable and completely ignorant comment.

A heartfelt thank you

To all of you that sent condolences to my family, I want to thank you very much....it was appreciated.

Thank you.....

D.W.

No Posts this week

Due to a death in the family, there will be no posts this week.

Anti-semitism is no trivial matter

I have refused to be dragged into this whole debate, and will only make this comment in response to a couple of emails I have received.

Anti-Semitism is no trivial matter, it is a serious issue and making jokes about it serves no useful purpose, and at worst is a disgrace to the entire debate.

I will not give the blog the satisfaction of mentioning their name, but their attempt to trivialize the issue is reason enough for any Jew or a supporter of Israel to boycott their site until such time as an apology is issued.

I can only suspect that since they have never been on the receiving end of this type of behaviour they have no clue how damaging it is.

"Consider the source" is appropriate in this case.

Boots a Farmer does not Make

Governor Rod Blagojevich did not attend last nights Governor's Sales of Champions; supposedly he was working on budget matters. Instead, he sent his wife in her brand, spanking new cowboy boots.

Now, if Patti Blagojevich wants to purchase cowboy boots, that is her business; but to make a point so say she did it to support state agriculture was the most laughable statement I have heard out of the Blagojevich's this year.

I have news for you Patti, a pair of cowboy boots does not a farmer make, nor does it show any support for the State of Illinois agriculture. It shows how contemptable you find this part of the state fair. I would venture to say those boots will be relegated to the back of the closet for a few months before they find their way into the used boot bin at the Salvation Army Thrift store.

If you really wanted to show your support, you would have donned a pair of WORK boots, a pair of ratty jeans, and a t-shirt and gone down to the cattle barn and actually helped some of those kids clean out stalls and fit their animals for the show. Now, that would be showing support.

How about spending a couple of days on a farm actually doing the work Patti? Oh, I am sorry such work is beneath someone of your elegance and grace.

Making an issue out the boots only made Patti Blagojevich look more like the idiot who is Governor, instead of Illinois' First Lady showing support for the kids and our great agriculture heritage.

Father of Anne with an "E" Perfects Softball Interview Style

Ever since I was a little boy, I have been fascinated with interviews, especially those that ask a question, wait for a response and then ask follow up questions based upon the answers given.

It appears that is a dying art. Of the last four interviews I have heard Anne with an "E"'s father have, he has not asked a single follow up question to an answer given; regardless of how evasive or ridiculous the answer is. He simply allows those he is interviewing to spin their answer like a cotton gin would spin a ball of thread and then hit it out of the ball park like a Hank Aaron home run.

Slow pitch underhanded softball is for grade school kids, not a radio stations' interviews.

Anne with an "E", you seem to be the smart one in your family, maybe your dad would be willing to retire and allow you to conduct all future interviews.

I am no fan of Chris Matthews, and he is anything but hardball, but his interview style is far more informative than Anne with an "E"'s father ever thought of being.

Rove Departure Nothing New

The mainstream media is making political hay out of the resignation of Karl Rove, effective August 31, 2007, as though it is some major political event. The truth is, with only 526 days in office remaining Rove's departure was to be expected.

There will be more in the coming days. Since 1960, the only administration that did not lose a substantial number of the staff was Johnson's when he took over for Kennedy. High level staff members know the end is near and will be making career changes, aligning themselves with potential presidential candiates, and taking time off from the constant grind of governmental work.

Yes, Rove is a very close friend and advisor of the President, and yes not having him there on a daily basis will leave a void, but nobody is beyond replacement; especially in politics and we can be assured that despite Rove's departure, he will only be a phone call away. Nobody refuses a call from the President, regardless of party or positions.

Iraqi Tet - Would the outcome be the same as '68

On January 30, 1968, the Viet Cong launched a series of offensives that were designed to shake American support for the Vietnam war. Speaking from a military standpoint, the tet offensive was a horrendeous loss for the Viet Cong, but from a political and press standpoint it turned the war on its head and ultimately led to the United States withdrawing from Vietnam.

There is a concern within the administration that Al Qaeda may be planning a series of offensives as were executed in 1968. The administration is worried, because such an offensive could have a tremendous influence on support for the war, regardless of the outcome militarily.

History sometimes repeats itself, and the likelihood of a "tet" in Iraq is probably better than 50%; the aftermath is where history could change course. The President for all of his faults, has refused to give up on this war and truly believes it is winnable, and is more than willing to stake his entire legacy on that belief. Such a move would be directly opposite of President Johnson, who after the Tet Offensive, began the slow withdrawal of American forces from Vietnam.

Al Qaeda may plan and execute such an offensive, but absent a huge loss militarily, I do not see this President changing course. Good, bad or otherwise - he will ride the Iraq war to its ultimate end.

Cindy vs. Nancy (War of the Century)

In the left corner is Cindy "I hate Bush" Sheehan, and in the right corner comes Nancy "I hate Bush" Pelosi.......this could shape up to be one of the most exciting House races we have seen in a century. You have two extremely liberal, far outside the mainstream, candidates who have built their political careers on the backs of others.

I cannot wait to see which of the two draws blood first!

As an amatuer oddsmakers, I am laying 4 to 3 for Pelosi.