Sebastian – Page 1453 – Shall Not Be Questioned

Act 1 Rejected Across State

Pennsylvanians have overwhelmingly said no to Act 1, the latest property tax reduction ~~scam~~ scheme to come out of Harrisburg. My school district, Neshaminy, rejected it more than 2 to 1. In a demonstration of why your vote really does count, Bristol passed the Act 1 measure by ONE vote.Â One commenter on a local paper states:

The message we are sending to Harrisburg is that we don’t trust you. We were supposed to get real estate tax relief from the slots pallors. Now you way we will give you that relief if we ok a new tax. No thanks boys and girls your word is no longer any good with us.

Amen!

Tom Knox Campaign Headquarters Robbed

Apparently during today’s election, Democratic mayoral candidate Tom Knox’s headquarters was robbed by a gunman:

Two armed gunmen robbed a Knox campaign office in the 4600 block of Frankford Avenue. Police say the robbers were wearing red “Knox for Mayor” t-shirts when they entered the office.

Investigators say one robber showed a gun in his waistband and demanded money from the workers.

I guess if you’re a criminal, it’s safer to rob the campaign headquarters of a candidate has steadfastly supported gun control, than it would be to risk that the guy you pick off the street might be one of the 32,000 people in the city with a license to carry a concealed pistol. 32,000 in a city that size are still pretty good odds, but it would have been a pretty sure bet that no one in Knox’s campaign was strapped.

Why I Keep a Firearm in the Home

Because I don’t want this to ever happen to me.Â Note that police arrived 5 minutes after being called, but that wasn’t quick enough.Â Authorities are warning residents to keep their doors locked.Â That is good advise, and I would add to that to keep a loaded shotgun handy.

I much prefer reading about sorry sods who made the mistake of bringing a knife to a gunfight, rather than reading about the brutal stabbing death of a family and kid.Â I feel for the surviving daughter.

Gonzalez Sucks Round III

You know when you make John Ashcroft look good, it’s time to think about resigning.

Comey testified Tuesday that when he refused to certify the program, Gonzales and Card headed to Ashcroft’s sick bed in the intensive care unit at George Washington University Hospital.

When Gonzales appealed to Ashcroft, the ailing attorney general lifted his head off the pillow and in straightforward terms described his views of the program, Comey said. Then he pointed out that Comey, not Ashcroft, held the powers of the attorney general at that moment.

Gonzales and Card then left the hospital room, Comey said.

“I was angry,” Comey told the panel. “I thought I had just witnessed an effort to take advantage of a very sick man who did not have the powers of the attorney general.”

Now, as civil liberty violations go, I never thought this program was a big one. But I think there are legitimate questions as to its legality. This was a pretty low tactic on the part of Card and Gonzalez.

Bush has stood solidly by his longtime counselor’s side; calls for Gonzales’ resignation have waned in recent weeks.

Bush’s loyalty is admirable, but it’s hurt him politically. He’s held on to people far too long after they have become liabilities for him, and Gonzalez is just the latest example of this.

Philadelphia Iraq Question

On the ballot currently in today’s Philadelphia city elections:

CHARTER CHANGE QUESTION 7 (Bill No. 060849)

â€œShall the Philadelphia Home Rule Charter be amended to state the citizensâ€™ view regarding the mission served by U.S. troops in Iraq and that the citizens of Philadelphia urge the United States to make year 2007 the time to redeploy U.S. troops out of harmâ€™s way in Iraq?â€

The ballot measure was passed 72% to 29%, or thereabouts.Â Now keep in mind that Republican turnout in this election was way way down.Â The shocking thing to me is that close to 30% of people, mostly Democrats, in Philadelphia actually voted no.Â I thought this would pass a lot more overwhelmingly. Â But still, a fantastic victory for the folks who want the whole Iraq project to be for naught.

Personally, I have a suggestion: Why don’t we have the troops who are actually fighting the war vote on whether or not they want to come home, or complete the mission?

Stop & Frisk, Here We Come!

Michael Nutter, at this point, appears to be walking away with the Democratic nomination for Mayor of Philadelphia.Â By a healthy margin, too.Â This means that he will be the next Mayor of Philadelphia.

Reminder from Countertop

All animals are equal, but some are more equal than others.

Rosie Gets Her Truther On (Again)

Structural engineering and demolition expert, Rosie O’Donnel, is putting on her truther (tin foil?) hat once again:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m0vJVhRocFQ[/youtube]

And, just the same as last time Popular Mechanics is on the case again to expose her as the fool she is:

For more detail on one aspect of the talk showâ€™s conversation, our expanded report in book form, Debunking 9/11: Why Conspiracy Theories Canâ€™t Stand Up To The Facts, describes the volcanic forces that Ms. Hasselbeck referenced on Monday: â€œ[A] seismology report prepared at Columbia University provides a glimpse into how that damage [to the southwest corner of WTC7] was caused. The report notes that the collapses of the Twin Towers caused little ground instability, but nevertheless discharged a massive amount of energyâ€”as much as 10⁷ joules in the kinetic energy of dust and debris. Except for temperature, the effect was similar to the energy contained in the pyroclastic ash given off in volcanic eruptions. â€˜Only a very small portion of the [gravitational energy associated with the collapse of each tower] was converted into seismic waves,â€™ the report states. â€˜Most of the energy went into deformation of buildings and the formation of rubble and dust.â€™â€

Never underestimate the amount of energy stored up in a standing skyscraper or the kinetic energy of a fueled up plane moving at 500mph. It’s sad to see so many people buying into this conspiracy bullshit.

Hat tip: Instapundit

Time to Head Home for the Good Stuff

I came into work today, which was probably a mistake, because I am so out of it I got nothing done, except filling my trash can full of tissues.Â I think it’s time to call it a day and head home to dope myself up with Benadryl, which is the only thing that gives me actual relief.Â Â Sadly, it also either a) puts me immediately to sleep or b) sends my brain somewhere into outer earth orbit.

Gonzalez Sucks Round II

Gonzalez wants to criminalize attempted copyright infringement:

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales is pressing the U.S. Congress to enact a sweeping intellectual-property bill that would increase criminal penalties for copyright infringement, including “attempts” to commit piracy.

“To meet the global challenges of IP crime, our criminal laws must be kept updated,” Gonzales said during a speech before the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Washington on Monday.

What is an attempt to commit copyright infringement exactly? And why are Republicans pushing for these draconian copyright protections? Most of the people who benefit from these are core Democrat constituencies.

I’ll put my biases here up front, I believe in much weaker copyright laws than we currently have, but I also don’t think this is good politics for the Republicans. Also, we have this:

Create a new crime of life imprisonment for using pirated software. Anyone using counterfeit products who “recklessly causes or attempts to cause death” can be imprisoned for life. During a conference call, Justice Department officials gave the example of a hospital using pirated software instead of paying for it.

In addition, it’s also calling for expanded civil asset forfeiture for DMCA violations. It also requires the RIAA to be notified by homeland security “when CDs with ‘unauthorized fixations of the sounds, or sounds and images, of a live musical performance’ are attempted to be imported.” I guess because terrorists aren’t as big a threat to the American way of life as copyright infringers. Seriously, when college kids who copied a song start getting thrown in federal prison for years, and have their lives ruined, something has gone horribly off the rails. I can’t blame Gonzalez for enforcing the laws Congress has already passed, even though I don’t agree with them, but asking for more is simply unconscionable.

It is time for Gonzalez to go.