24 March - Links and Comments

The Headline: Rep. Frank says he’ll file bill to legalize marijuana. The Reality: The most Rep. Frank can do is propose that marijuana possession and use no longer be a federal offense. My Take: Marijuana use is not a federal government issue. Let individual states and cities determine what their community standards should be rather than the federal government. When prohibition ended some counties decided to remain dry (ie: alcohol free). People were able to decide if they wanted to live in a normal county or a dry one.

In response to finding out that it appears Obama's pastor racist point of view is rather mainstream in predominantly black churches, Rachel Lucas has a take on the whole race thing that I believe is spot on for how a lot of white people think: They/we are just tired of the race BS.

You want equality, then take it, on all levels.

That means when Obama uses the phrase “typical white person”, he deserves to have his figurative ass kicked just like Whitey’s figurative ass would be kicked for saying “typical black person”. It means Reverend Wright is an asshole of a racist just like David Duke. Play fair or don’t play at all.

Listen, if I were black, I’d have simmering rage and resentment, too. I’d be furious if my ancestors came to this country in slave ships and if my grandparents had to drink from separate water fountains. What I wouldn’t do is blame white people who didn’t have anything to do with those things and never would because we were born in a different time and we know those things are WRONG. That includes most whites under the age of about 70.

Rachel is right, but I think the bigger thing that will in time come out of this is a revelation that a good number of black ministers are ill serving their flock by stressing past grievances. A more appropriate way of preaching would be to stress self-improvement. In other words, by focusing on who else is to blame for their problems these preachers are absolving their congregation from any responsibility to improve their own lot in life. Now, that is truly shameful.

Stolen Valor is a term for people who lie about their military service. It can be as simple as the drunk holding a sign saying "Homeless Vet Please Help" or guy in a bar saying he served in order to get someone to buy him a drink. It can be as complicated as a politician who actually served inflating or exaggerating his exploits to influence voters. Here is a story of a jerk who took it to a whole new level:

A Colorado man is accused of stealing an Army veteran's identity and using it for 24 years to get married, obtain free medical treatment and even serve as president of a VFW post.

Holy crap! Living a lie for 24 years and it was the wife who turned him in when she figured things out.

Iraq war protesters disrupt Chicago Mass. Absolutely disgusting! These same idiots would cry about any infringement of their First Amendment rights but don't give any thought to how they are impacting others rights. (h/t Don Surber)

From the Washington Post we get: The Next President's Plan . . .
Advisers to Sens. Hillary Clinton, John McCain and Barack Obama Detail the Candidates' Ideas for Turning Around the Economy. Click the links and judge the plans for yourself. I believe all three propose too much government action in people's personal lives. McCain's ideas regarding talk of a housing bailout include these principles:

(1) No taxpayer dollars should bail out real estate speculators or financial market participants who failed to do due diligence in assessing credit risks. (2) Any financial assistance should be accompanied by reforms that ensure that we never face this problem again. (3) Too little equity -- small down payments by home buyers and too little capital at our financial institutions -- was a source of the housing and credit problem that must be reversed. (4) Where government assistance is merited, lenders and homeowners should make financial sacrifices to qualify.