An Encouraging Sign

Victor Davis Hanson has his own improvement list for President Obama, and he really nails the most tedious and dishonest traits of our new leader.

I have never understood "Obamamania." The man has never impressed me. I've always thought he was all talk, no walk. I've never felt an iota of trust in a single word he ever said.

So when even Time magazine seems to have the stars knocked out of its eyes, and when Democratic senators start peeling away from consensus with the president's unending spend-u-lous bills, there may be a few cracks appearing in the Obama veneer. It's an encouraging sign that a famous remark attributed to the real Abraham Lincoln, is, in fact true:

You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you can not fool all of the people all of the time.

Thoughts of War

This was our time to be children.~ Arturo to Angelo, Miracle at St. Anna

I'm not much of a Spike Lee fan, but when Miracle at St. Anna was released last year, I wanted to see it at the movies. It received some merciless drubbings from a wide swath of film critics and disappeared from theaters before I was able to get there.
I remembered it, though, and waited for the DVD. I watched it a couple of nights ago, and I'm not over it yet.

Some of the criticisms are valid. Yes, there is a bit too much going on in this film. There are too many story threads, too much self-indulgence by the director--even too many miracles, from what I could see. It's overlong by at least a quarter hour (although I didn't notice the time while watching it). Also, I found some of the race-activist dialog the characters engaged in at least a decade ahead of its time.

All that being said, I think it's a good movie. My criterion is simple. Any film that holds my thoughts long after viewing qualifies. Two days later, I'm still remembering the winsome character Angelo and the touching relationship between him and his "Giante Cioccolato" (Chocolate Giant), the raw and gripping depictions of war's brutality, and the uplifting final scene that gently closes the circle on a harsh and bitter journey.

I also liked the fact that the Germans and Italians spoke in their native languages, rather than in English with those distracting phoney accents. Consequently, there are a fair amount of subtitles to read, but I found that to be worth the effort.

Miracle at St. Anna. If you can bear a movie depicting the terrible violence and waste of war, it's a thoughtful addition to your list.

Tough Talk is Cheap

You talk too much, you worry me to death,
You talk too much, you even worry my pet,
You just talk, you talk too much.
~ Joe Jones & Reginald Hall , 1958

Three things President Obama should do immediately:

1. You’re president now-- “man up.”

Just how long do you plan on pointing over your shoulder at George W. Bush? Bush didn’t jam the stimulus bill through Congress. This economy now belongs to you—deal with it, and stop complaining.

2. Stop telling us how bad things are.

Since we, the “little people,” are the ones trying to make the mortgage and car payments, feed our families, and keep or find jobs, there is very little—if anything—you can tell us about the current financial storm that we don’t already understand much better than you do. Pack up your sob story. We at home don’t want to burn any more electricity listening to you whine about “Crisis” and “Catastrophe.” Either find something positive to say, or stop giving speeches until you do.

3. Start outlining specific actions to improve the situation.

Don’t look now, Mr. President (it will only give you something else to moan about), but your approval ratings are dropping with dramatic speed. That’s because Americans are not stupid people. Although no one denies that you are a world class talker, you can only blow smoke for so long. Eventually, you are going to have to explain, in fine detail, exactly how you intend to fix this mess. The sooner you start doing that, the better for all of us—especially for you, if you’re interested in a second term.

Respect, At Last

One Marine's View gives a worthy endorsement to a movie that I've heard nothing but rave advance reviews about: "Taking Chance," starring Kevin Bacon.

The trailer is linked here. The movie airs tonight, Saturday, February 21.

I don't have HBO, but it's the next addition to my Netflix queue.

At long last, a respectful film honoring our fallen heroes. Now this is something that truly gives me "hope" for our country.

Taken Away

With both a Presidents Day holiday and a rainy day to enjoy, I decided to go see "Taken," currently in theaters. It was a very rapid hour and a half.

In the "24"/Jack Bauer tradition, there's Liam Neeson as your basic quick-thinking, highly skilled, brutally efficient government operative with the classic worrisome teenaged daughter, combined with a ticking clock. As this interview describes Neeson's character, he's "part Terminator, part Jason Bourne."

But then, who wouldn't be if their daughter had been kidnapped by sex slave traders?

"Taken" starts out with deceptive slowness, flipping suddenly into adrenaline mode while Dad is checking on his delinquent daughter via cell phone. He listens in agony to her screams as she is spirited away by Evil International Villains (EIVs). He immediately sets out to rescue his little girl. And, of course, he is intent on applying all of his considerably impressive career expertise to killing as many EIVs as his 96-hour window will allow. By film's end, the EIV body count would put the last act of a Shakespearean tragedy to shame.

There's one scene where a particularly unfortunate EIV is being tortured systematically by our determined dad. Father manages to procure the necessary information in short order. As he's leaving, he must make a fast decision--from the abduction scene onward, everything in this movie is fast--about whether to let said EIV live or die. (Spoiler alert: fans of "24" can use their imaginations as to how Jack Bauer might handle the situation.)

If you let yourself get "Taken" along for this thrill ride through the worst parental nightmare, you will most likely be highly entertained. Just brace yourself for the post-movie Knotted Neck Syndrome (KNS).

A Beautiful Story

Would you like to read some really good, heartwarming news for a change? Then click here and read this story of Boston firefighter William Carroll rescuing a baby girl from death in 1968. It left me groping for my Kleenex box.

Be sure to watch the video clip of their recent reunion. Just have your own Kleenex box at the ready.

William Carroll; such a lovely name. I can only hope we're related.

California Bleeding

Okay, things are bad all over. But for anyone living in California, they're much worse.

With the legislature poised to approve State and sales tax increases, a near-doubling of vehicle license fees, and a 12-cent per gallon increase in gasoline tax, California residents like myself are really looking forward to receiving that tax cut from the Federal stimulus bill. Yes, that timely $13 per week will go a long way towards offsetting the cost of living in "the Golden State."

No Surprises

Mark Steyn's NRO article is a customarily entertaining recap of the first two weeks in Obamatopia. Read it for a chuckle; we all need one of those these days.

However, I can't agree with Steyn that the rapid descent of President Obama from his lofty, media-created heights is such a surprise. While hoping I was wrong (if "hope" is still an appropriate word), I fully expected him to fall on his inexperienced face rather quickly.

On a more acerbic note, Victor Davis Hanson tartly outlines the public unraveling of the "cool" president. An interesting analysis, but here again, no surprises. President Barack "The One" Obama is totally unaccustomed to difficult situations, negative scrutiny, uncomfortable questions, and multiple criticisms. His pique and impatience under pressure is to be expected. Obama's ill-temper at his current woes is the logical outcome of the shameless, uninterrupted fawning over him by MSM for years. He never thought he'd be challenged, at least not to such a significant extent.

Now the president is throwing a virtual tantrum and screaming "Catastrophe!" if the stimulus bill doesn't pass. How's that for "change you can believe in"? At his next podium appearance, Obama may well draw himself up and bellow: "How dare you defy me! Don't you know who I am?" This, too, would not surprise me.

MSM created this self-aggrandizing monster, and America now has to live in its uncertain clutches for at least four years. We'll need to pace ourselves on the obviously rocky path to "hope" and "change." While thus far the plot line has been predictable, there may yet be a few surprises along the way.

Lessons in Faith and Courage

Courage is the ladder on which all the other virtues mount.
~ Clare Booth Luce


It's probably safe to conclude that we're all rather weary of idiotic politics, public tax cheats, and global financial disaster. Therefore, I decided to look in an entirely different direction for tonight's post, and this is what I found.

The Martyrs of Nagasaki. Twenty-six of them, crucified on February 5, 1597. I'm sorry I hadn't heard about them before, but far better late than never. Their story is a dramatic and inspiring example of faith, courage, and perseverance in the face of terrible suffering. Once I found them and started researching, I was surprised to find so many references to the Nagasaki Martyrs on the internet.

It's always humbling--and a bit disheartening--to realize how much there still is to learn.

The story of the Martyrs of Nagasaki is well worth knowing, especially in our modern day faith-and-courage challenged world.

Leftovers

Obama's new Cabinet cronies

Have often been typical phonies;

Their taxes unpaid,

Their exits displayed--

We were "hoping" for "change" in baloneys.