So will shops stop selling Che T-Shirts now?

My friends, I see that Next, the British clothes shop, has decided to recall a range of men's underwear after complaints it featured an image of National Socialist leader Adolf Hitler.

According to their spokesman:

"We have checked with the designer who confirmed the image was inspired by Lenin. Nonetheless, if even one customer is offended or upset we are happy to withdraw the range."

The decision to withdraw the goods is the correct one, but why would it have been acceptable in Next's eyes to portray Lenin, one of history's greatest villains?

Lenin is continually portrayed by Communist apologists and their allied historical revisionists as the 'Good Red' whose ideas were later corrupted by Stalin. Lenin was, in fact, the father of 'Red Terror', the state system resulting in the death of some 40 million Soviet citizens from 1922-1953. He was amongst the very worst of the many left wing intellectuals with blood on their hands who brought untold suffering to the 20th century.

The moral blindness of the Left, with their Che-t-shirts and Soviet label jeans knows no bounds.

DeNuke Iran

My friends, I have found an interesting new American pressure group that has been created by a former staffer on the Bobby and Teddy Kennedy Presidential campaigns - DeNuke Iran.

Here's what they're about:



Interesting...

A Constitution for the United Kingdom?

My friends, there is a fascinating piece written by Matthew Norman in today’s Independent – not something you’ll find me writing often I suspect.

The piece entitled “We must seize the moment to demand a written constitution” gives Mr Norman’s opinion on why we need a written constitution and why David Cameron must be the man to offer it. It then gives a few ideas about the mechanics (how it should be devised and what might be in it).

He talks of the genuine fury of the electorate aimed at the political system in the United Kingdom and then asks “how that fury must be channeled if a political system atrophied into incompetence, low-level corruption and the highest of farce is to be salvaged and rebuilt”.

He goes on:

“Only in moments of chaotic flux, when the foetid accommodations and stifling conventions of the age are suspended because the status quo looks scarier than radical change, does a glimpse of a less imperfect country feel like more than utopian dreaming. Such openings come seldom, vanish swiftly, and must be seized immediately.

“This one may well not be. More than likely we will, until the June elections divert the spotlight, fixate on all the expenses debacle without questioning the underlying culture that generated it, and how that might be ended.

“If so – if this golden opportunity is wasted – it will be a historic tragedy for this country. For the fiddling, as shameful as it's been, is not the disease but one of its more trivial symptoms. It is to a democratic sickness that remains largely undiagnosed what a bout of violent diarrhoea can be to colonic cancer. Mask it with over-the-counter medication though you may, more serious symptoms will soon enough emerge. The longer you ignore those, the more brutal the treatment required, and the lower the chances of recovery.

“The illness in question is malignant in the extreme, and the only effective treatment is a written constitution. Since David Cameron will shortly be Prime Minister, it is to him we must turn on bended knee, begging that he acts while the rage is still hot and the desire for change intense, and makes a binding commitment to that constitution. He should pledge that, within an hour of kissing the Queen's hand, he will inaugurate a year-long national debate about how we want that constitution to look, involving the town-hall meetings and an appeal for public proposals with which we can reacquaint ourselves with the notion that our stake in how we are governed extends beyond voting with distaste every four or five years.

“A committee of respected parliamentarians (there are a few) and distinguished outsiders – scientists, jurists, academics, trade unionists, soldiers, artists, and so on; even national treasures such as Mr Fry – should be co-opted to filter out the most promising ideas, and hand them to the Commons for a series of free votes. Those approved should then be given to a group of our finest writers, to be translated into a document as simple, elegant and enduring as the US Constitution revered almost as a deity to this day.”

Up to this point I agree with him. Previously I had always maintained the opinion that a modern written constitution, devised to replace the uncodified one under which the United Kingdom currently operates, was a particularly un-British idea on several levels, not least of which was the risk that writing one would inevitably descend to politically correct platidunising (see the proposed new European Constitution for evidence of that). The overarching objection came from the classic conservative principle of Viscount Falkland:

“Where it is not necessary to change, it is necessary not to change."

Now, sad to say, it has become necessary to change. As with the great nineteenth century Tory reformers such as Disraeli and Peel, the current leader of the Party must now become a radical in defence of the kingdom. I trust, I hope not naively, that David Cameron will not be seduced by modern moralising in creating a written constitution for the United Kingdom, but will instead be inspired by the simplicity of the Constitution of the United States.

Mr Norman gives some examples of elements he would like to see:

“Several of the most compelling requirements race to mind. Electoral reform is one. The madness that the votes of little more a third of the actual electorate, and a fifth of the potential electorate, produce almost unlimited political power while disenfranchising the majority must end. Fixed-term parliaments are a no-brainer. So is a clause guaranteeing freedom of speech.

“The soul-sapping spectacle of MPs trooping pliantly through the lobbies to vote for things in which they don't believe or actively disbelieve, or even of which they are blissfully ignorant, must stop. They continually assure us how incredibly hard they work, but being lobby fodder isn't work at all. It's a cushy version of house arrest.

“The constitutional function of a backbench MP is not to rubber-stamp the leadership's will, but to act as a check against the power of the executive. A written constitution could enshrine their duty to vote according to conscience and constituents' interests, not the blackmail and bribery of the whips.

“It should elevate the stature of select committees, those snivelling apologies for overseers of government practice and malpractice. If we drastically increased allowances for research staff, and offered additional salary, their members' status would be enhanced to approximately that of a minister of state. They might then resist the threats and lure of ministerial preferment, and do the fearlessly unpartisan job expected.

“There are countless other symptoms that sorely want treating... the lack of an elected upper chamber; the absence of quasi-judicial scrutiny of such outrages as the decision to go to war in Iraq and the security failures that prefaced the 7/7 bombings; the refusal to devolve to local government outside London; the criminally reckless failure to control and de-politicise the police; and many more besides.

“The overall imperative, however, is to treat the sickness itself by reconnecting the populace with its legislature, by restoring the supremacy of the Commons – our only direct link the central governance of Britain – by packing it with the kind of high-minded, talented and independent representatives whom we'd be delighted to pay £100,000 per annum and more."

I differ with him on several of those. I do not share his opinion that some form of proportional representation would improve our constitutional democracy, nor believe the case for fixed-term parliaments is a no-brainer. I suspect he might not share my view that a strong constitution will be a welcome bulwark against ever-closer European Union than the political whim of whichever party controls Parliament at any given time. I do agree with the need for guaranteed free speech, however, and his view of the role of the backbench MP. These are differences of opinion on content, though, and must not detract from the wider arguments for a debate to take place along the lines of the Philadelphia Convention that gave birth to the American document.

Mr Norman concludes:

“We need that written constitution desperately. It is in David Cameron's gift, and his alone, meaningfully to promise one. He should do so at once. This window will close by the day, and may not reopen in our lifetimes.”

Amen to that, my friends, amen to that.

So, what do you think should go in a new United Kingdom Constitution?

Lieutenant Columbo grills Obama

My friends, I've tried to find the source of this spoof Columbo script, but I'm afraid I've been unable to. If you know the source please do tell me and I will credit it.

-

"Excuse me Mr. Obama, I mean President Obama, Sir. Um... I know you're busy, and important and stuff. I mean running the county is very important and -- ah -- I hate to bother you Sir. I will only take a minute. Ok Sir?

"See, I have these missing pieces that are holding me up, and I was wondering Sir, if you could take time out of your busy schedule and help me out. You know, no big deal, just some loose ends and things.

"Hey, you have a nice place here! The wife sees houses like this on TV all the time and says boy she wishes she had digs like this you know? Is that painting real? Really? Wow. I saw something like that in a museum once!

"Oh, sorry Sir. I didn't mean to get off the track. So if you could just help me out a minute and give me some details, I will get right out of your way. I want to close this case and maybe take the wife to Coney Island or something. Ever been to Coney Island Sir? No? I didn't think so...

"Well, listen, anyway, I can't seem to get some information I need to wrap this up. These things seem to either be 'Not released' or 'not available'. I'm sure it's just an oversight or glitch or something, so if you could you tell me where these things are -- I -- I have them written down here somewhere -- oh wait. Sorry about the smears. It was raining out. I'll just read it to you.

"Could you please help me find these things Sir?

1. Occidental College records -- Not released

2. Columbia College records -- Not released

3. Columbia Thesis paper -- Not available

4. Harvard College records -- Not released

5. Selective Service Registration -- Not released

6. Medical records -- Not released

7. Illinois State Senate schedule -- Not available

8. Your Illinois State Senate records -- Not available

9. Law practice client list -- Not released

10. Certified Copy of original Birth certificate -- Not released

11. Embossed, signed paper Certification of Live Birth -- Not released

12. Record of your baptism -- Not available

"Oh and one more thing Senator, I can't seem to find any articles you published as editor of the Harvard Law Review, or as a Professor at the University of Chicago. Can you explain that to me Sir? Oh but, hey -- listen! I know you're busy! If this is too much for you right now -- I mean -- tell you what. I'll come back tomorrow. Give you some time to get these things together, You know? I mean, I know you're busy. I'll just let myself out.

"I'll be back tomorrow. And the day after...

"What's that Mr. President? That who wants to know these things?

"We, the People of the United States of America! You know, the ones that vote."

Today's Truth

"Every collectivist revolution rides in on a Trojan horse of 'emergency'. It was the tactic of Lenin, Hitler, and Mussolini. In the collectivist sweep over a dozen minor countries of Europe, it was the cry of men striving to get on horseback. And 'emergency' became the justification of the subsequent steps. This technique of creating emergency is the greatest achievement that demagoguery attains."

Herbert Hoover - (1874 - 1964)
Professional mining engineer, author, United States Secretary of Commerce and the 31st President of the United States

Look, Obama just doesn't make gaffes, OK?

My friends, a couple of days ago at a NATO press conference in Strasbourg the Obamessiah managed to slip in another gaffe unreported by the Mainstream Media. This isn't his first gaffe - he's already managed to offend Special Olympians, claim there are 58 states in the United States of America and thought the Afghans speak Arabic - but it's a telling one because of how its treatment illustrates the easy ride he gets in comparison to other famous gaffers.

Remember Dan Quayle's comment about speaking Latin in Latin America? Of course you do, I mean it was 20 years ago but people still bleat on about it, even though it's actually a myth invented by lazy journalists.

Remember George Bush calling the residents of Greece "Grecians"? Again, of course you do, I mean it was 10 years ago, but the Mainstream Media never cease retelling his gaffes.

So what did the Obamessiah do this time? Well, my friends, in a gaffe similar to those above he seems to think Austrians speak...er...Austrian. In response to an Austrian reporter he said this:

“Erm...political interaction in Europe is not that different from the United States Senate. There’s a lot of...erm...I don’t know what the term is in Austrian, wheeling and dealing, and, you know, people are, you know, pursuing their interests, and...erm....erm...you know, everybody has their own particular issues and their own particular politics.”

What an orator! What command of the English language! What poetry!

Here it is in full with a piece taken from fair and balanced Fox News (because you won't find it on the biased British Broadcasting Corporation):

Maybe, though, I'm being unfair. Like I said in the title, the Obamessiah just doesn't make gaffes, OK? This was no obvious gaffe as it would have been had it emanated from the lips of George Bush, oh no, this was perhaps a "knowing casualism".

You couldn't make it up.

Daniel Hannan MEP for Question Time

My friends, time to pull out your fingers and get on to the BBC.

We all know they censored Dan Hannan's brilliant speech to Gordon Brown, but they shouldn't be allowed to censor him in future.

So, write to the producers at Question Time by posting on this page and tell them you want Hannan on the panel and not the usual pop singer or comedian they cheapen the discussion with week in week out.

The devalued Prime Minister of a devalued Government

My friends, this is brilliant stuff - Dan is wasted as an MEP.

Give me Liberty, or give me Death!

My friends, an apology. Yesterday marked the anniversary of one of the greatest speeches in political history and I missed it. So here it is, a day late.

The speech was given by Patrick Henry (29th May 1736 to 6th June 1799), the first and fifth Governor of Virginia famed, along with the two Thomases (Paine and Jefferson) for being amongst the most influential and radical Republican advocates of the American Revolution. He was noted for his denunciations of government corruption and defence of historic rights.

It was given on 23rd March 1775 at St. John's Church in Richmond Virginia, with George Washington in attendance, and is believed to have swung the balance in convincing the Virginia House of Burgesses to pass a resolution committing the state's troops to the Revolutionary War.

Upon hearing the speech the crowd is said to have shouted "To arms! To arms!"

It still resonates to this day.

“No man thinks more highly than I do of the patriotism, as well as abilities, of the very worthy gentlemen who have just addressed the house. But different men often see the same subject in different lights; and, therefore, I hope it will not be thought disrespectful to those gentlemen if, entertaining as I do opinions of a character very opposite to theirs, I shall speak forth my sentiments freely and without reserve. This is no time for ceremony. The question before the house is one of awful moment to this country. For my own part, I consider it as nothing less than a question of freedom or slavery; and in proportion to the magnitude of the subject ought to be the freedom of the debate. It is only in this way that we can hope to arrive at the truth, and fulfill the great responsibility which we hold to God and our country. Should I keep back my opinions at such a time, through fear of giving offense, I should consider myself as guilty of treason towards my country, and of an act of disloyalty toward the Majesty of Heaven, which I revere above all earthly kings.

“Mr. President, it is natural to man to indulge in the illusions of hope. We are apt to shut our eyes against a painful truth, and listen to the song of that siren till she transforms us into beasts. Is this the part of wise men, engaged in a great and arduous struggle for liberty? Are we disposed to be of the numbers of those who, having eyes, see not, and, having ears, hear not, the things which so nearly concern their temporal salvation? For my part, whatever anguish of spirit it may cost, I am willing to know the whole truth, to know the worst, and to provide for it.

“I have but one lamp by which my feet are guided, and that is the lamp of experience. I know of no way of judging of the future but by the past. And judging by the past, I wish to know what there has been in the conduct of the British ministry for the last ten years to justify those hopes with which gentlemen have been pleased to solace themselves and the House. Is it that insidious smile with which our petition has been lately received?

“Trust it not, sir; it will prove a snare to your feet. Suffer not yourselves to be betrayed with a kiss. Ask yourselves how this gracious reception of our petition comports with those warlike preparations which cover our waters and darken our land. Are fleets and armies necessary to a work of love and reconciliation? Have we shown ourselves so unwilling to be reconciled that force must be called in to win back our love? Let us not deceive ourselves, sir. These are the implements of war and subjugation; the last arguments to which kings resort. I ask gentlemen, sir, what means this martial array, if its purpose be not to force us to submission? Can gentlemen assign any other possible motive for it? Has Great Britain any enemy, in this quarter of the world, to call for all this accumulation of navies and armies? No, sir, she has none. They are meant for us: they can be meant for no other. They are sent over to bind and rivet upon us those chains which the British ministry have been so long forging. And what have we to oppose to them? Shall we try argument? Sir, we have been trying that for the last ten years. Have we anything new to offer upon the subject? Nothing. We have held the subject up in every light of which it is capable; but it has been all in vain. Shall we resort to entreaty and humble supplication? What terms shall we find which have not been already exhausted? Let us not, I beseech you, sir, deceive ourselves. Sir, we have done everything that could be done to avert the storm which is now coming on. We have petitioned; we have remonstrated; we have supplicated; we have prostrated ourselves before the throne, and have implored its interposition to arrest the tyrannical hands of the ministry and Parliament. Our petitions have been slighted; our remonstrances have produced additional violence and insult; our supplications have been disregarded; and we have been spurned, with contempt, from the foot of the throne! In vain, after these things, may we indulge the fond hope of peace and reconciliation.

“There is no longer any room for hope. If we wish to be free - if we mean to preserve inviolate those inestimable privileges for which we have been so long contending - if we mean not basely to abandon the noble struggle in which we have been so long engaged, and which we have pledged ourselves never to abandon until the glorious object of our contest shall be obtained - we must fight! I repeat it, sir, we must fight! An appeal to arms and to the God of hosts is all that is left us! They tell us, sir, that we are weak; unable to cope with so formidable an adversary. But when shall we be stronger? Will it be the next week, or the next year? Will it be when we are totally disarmed, and when a British guard shall be stationed in every house? Shall we gather strength but irresolution and inaction? Shall we acquire the means of effectual resistance by lying supinely on our backs and hugging the delusive phantom of hope, until our enemies shall have bound us hand and foot? Sir, we are not weak if we make a proper use of those means which the God of nature hath placed in our power. The millions of people, armed in the holy cause of liberty, and in such a country as that which we possess, are invincible by any force which our enemy can send against us. Besides, sir, we shall not fight our battles alone. There is a just God who presides over the destinies of nations, and who will raise up friends to fight our battles for us. The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave. Besides, sir, we have no election. If we were base enough to desire it, it is now too late to retire from the contest. There is no retreat but in submission and slavery! Our chains are forged! Their clanking may be heard on the plains of Boston! The war is inevitable - and let it come! I repeat it, sir, let it come.

“It is in vain, sir, to extenuate the matter. Gentlemen may cry, Peace, Peace - but there is no peace. The war is actually begun! The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms! Our brethren are already in the field! Why stand we here idle? What is it that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!”

Stirring stuff!

A taste of their own medicine

My friends, you'd need a heart of stone not to laugh at poor Chukka Umunna's plight. It seems his Liberal Democrat opponent, Chris Nicholson, is trying to make out the aspirant Labour MP comes from a “wealthy, privileged family background" and Chukka's getting all indignant about it posting open letters on his website.

Well I may be wrong, but I don't seem to remember Chukka decrying these tactics when they were used with disastrous consequences for his own party in Crewe.

Anyone? Anyone? Umunna? Anyone?

Mind you, you needn't fear that this Compass follower - you know, that group offering A Vision for the Democratic Left - is anything less than tough on crime. He is particularly proud of his grandfather's work as a British High Court judge, work in which he "earned a reputation for handing down particularly tough sentences to convicted rapists".

The hang 'em and flog 'em democratic left remains a force with which to be reckoned.

How Progressive Are You?

My friends, here is an interesting little tool with which you can assess your own political leanings:

Interactive Quiz - How Progressive Are You?

Coming, as it does, from the Center For American Progress you can guess straight away what it's hoping to achieve, nevertheless it's always instructive to see where your views pitch you in the overall political spectrum.

I scored 154/400 which makes me conservative. Apparently Americans average 209.5.

Clearly I'm not in the Center's target audience! What about you?

Today's Truth

"The Great Depression, like most other periods of severe unemployment, was produced by government mismanagement rather than by any inherent instability of the private economy. ... Roosevelt's policies were very destructive. Roosevelt's policies made the depression longer and worse than it otherwise would have been."

Milton Friedman - (1912-2006)
Nobel Prize-winning American economist, economic advisor to President Ronald Reagan

Today's Truth

"Everyone wants to live at the expense of the state. They forget that the state lives at the expense of everyone."

Frederic Bastiat - (1801-1850)

French political economist, classical liberal theorist, statesman, and author.

Source: The Law, (1850)

Teaching Gun Safety to Children

My friends, I was first taught gun safety at school when learning to shoot rifles for the cadets. I was 14 years old at the time.

However, it seems it's never to early to start.

Congratulations to the National Rifle Association for this socially responsible stance.

Today's Truth

"Somehow liberals have been unable to acquire from life what conservatives seem to be endowed with at birth: namely, a healthy skepticism of the powers of government agencies to do good."

Daniel Patrick Moynihan - (1927-2003)

Four term Democratic Party Senator for New York, United States Ambassador to the United Nations and India, member of four successive Presidential administrations from Kennedy to Ford and sociologist.

Source: New York Post, 14 May 1969

PETA loonies at it again

My friends, have these people got no sense of proportion, no decency, in fact no brains at all?

According to USA Today their latest trick is to get supporters to dress in full Ku Klux Klan garb to picket the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show at New York's Madison Square Garden. As the paper reports:

Their goal, according to a post on the PETA website, was to draw a parallel between the KKK and the American Kennel Club. "Obviously it's an uncomfortable comparison," PETA spokesman Michael McGraw told the Associated Press.

But the AKC is trying to create a "master race" when it comes to pure-bred dogs, he added. "It's a very apt comparison."

Way to go PETA! Promote your pro-animal agenda by alienating millions of people who remember the true crimes of the KKK with cheap campaigning stunts and demeaning comparisons. How can it go wrong?

What next, comparing chicken farming to the Nazi Holocaust?

Today's Truth

"You and I are told we must choose between a left or right, but I suggest there is no such thing as a left or right. There is only an up or down. Up to man's age-old dream-the maximum of individual freedom consistent with order or down to the ant heap of totalitarianism. Regardless of their sincerity, their humanitarian motives, those who would sacrifice freedom for security have embarked on this downward path."

Ronald Wilson Reagan - (1911–2004)

Hollywood star, President of the Screen Actors Guild, 33rd Governor of California (1967–1975) and 40th President of the United States (1981–1989)

Source: A Time for Choosing (a.k.a. The Speech), 1964

Dawkins Rap - Beware the Believers

My friends, I'm not convinced he (or his adherents) are over-burdened with a sense of humour, but surely even Richard Dawkins' lot must find this funny?

Islamist extremists call for Australian Forest Fire Jihad

My friends, there is an interesting piece from the Australian news source, The Age, back in September 2008.

According to them the Al-Ikhlas Islamic Network has been urging Muslims to deliberately light bushfires as a weapon of terror, arguing that lighting fires is an effective form of terrorism justified in Islamic law under the "eye for an eye" doctrine.

The idea for a Forest Fire Jihad has been attributed to imprisoned Al Qaeda leader Abu Musab Al-Suri who urged terrorists to use sulphuric acid and petrol to start forest fires. Given the current events in Victoria it is worth considering the following passage:

The posting - which instructs jihadis to remember "forest jihad" in summer months - says fires cause economic damage and pollution, tie up security agencies and can take months to extinguish so that "this terror will haunt them for an extended period of time".

"Imagine if, after all the losses caused by such an event, a jihadist organisation were to claim responsibility for the forest fires," the website says. "You can hardly begin to imagine the level of fear that would take hold of people in the United States, in Europe, in Russia and in Australia."

Chilling stuff...

Today's Truth

"The basic principle of the new education is to be that dunces and idlers must not be made to feel inferior to intelligent and industrious pupils. That would be "undemocratic". Entrance examinations must be framed so that all, or nearly all, citizens can go to universities, whether they have any power (or wish) to profit by higher education or not. The bright pupil thus remains democratically fettered to his own age group throughout his school career, and a boy who would be capable of tackling Aeschylus or Dante sits listening to his coeval's attempts to spell out A CAT SAT ON A MAT. And what we must realise is that "democracy" in the diabolical sense (I'm as good as you...) is the finest instrument we could possibly have for extirpating political democracies from the face of the earth."

C.S. Lewis - (1898-1963)
British novelist, academic, medievalist, literary critic, essayist, lay theologian and Christian apologist.

Source: The Screwtape Letters, 1942