Thoughts At Random

Thoughts At Random....

Just a few "off the cuff" items by readers who feel the need to contribute their random thoughts and views on any and all subjects.

HOME

FEATURES

Random Thoughts by..............

________________________________________________________________________________________

Carter gave away the Panama Canal, Now Bush gives away our domestic Ports, to Moslems no less

WASHINGTON - A company in the United Arab Emirates is poised to take over significant operations at six American ports as part of a corporate sale, leaving a country with ties to the Sept. 11 hijackers with influence over a maritime industry considered vulnerable to terrorism. The Bush administration considers the UAE an important ally in the fight against terrorism since the suicide hijackings and is not objecting to Dubai Ports World's purchase of London-based Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Co.

The $6.8 billion sale is expected to be approved Monday. The British company is the fourth largest ports company in the world and its sale would affect commercial U.S. port operations in New York, New Jersey, Baltimore, New Orleans, Miami and Philadelphia.

Vince Gioia

_____________________________________________

Al Qaeda Rises Again With a New 'Country', And We Allow It [from the India Times]

NEW DELHI: After taking "virtual control" of the entire North Waziristan province of Pakistan, Taliban and Al Qaeda have recently "declared" the establishment of an 'Islamic State' in the area and gained a major base for their operations against the US-led forces in Afghanistan, media reports said.

"The Taliban recently declared the establishment of an 'Islamic State' in North Waziristan, and they now, through the brutal elimination of criminal elements who previously held sway, in effect rule in the rugged territory," a latest report in 'Asia Times' magazine said.

It said that by "taking control of virtually all of Pakistan's North Waziristan tribal area on the border with Afghanistan, the Taliban have gained a significant base from which to wage their resistance against US-led forces in Afghanistan.

Vince Gioia

__________________________________________________________________

Our Friend Walter Has It Right, Again

"The way our Constitution's framers used the term, a right is something that exists simultaneously among people and imposes no obligation on another. For example, the right to free speech, or freedom to travel, is something we all simultaneously possess. My right to free speech or freedom to travel imposes no obligation upon another except that of non-interference. In other words, my exercising my right to speech or travel requires absolutely nothing from you and in no way diminishes any of your rights. Contrast that vision of a right to so-called rights to medical care, food or decent housing, independent of whether a person can pay. Those are not rights in the sense that free speech and freedom of travel are rights. If it is said that a person has rights to medical care, food and housing, and has no means of paying, how does he enjoy them? There's no Santa Claus or Tooth Fairy who provides them... So-called rights to medical care, food and decent housing impose an obligation on some other American who, through the tax code, must be denied his right to his earnings. In other words, when Congress gives one American a right to something he didn't earn, it takes away the right of another American to something he did earn... Three-fifths to two-thirds of the federal budget consists of taking property from one American and giving it to another. Were a private person to do the same thing, we'd call it theft. When government does it, we euphemistically call it income redistribution... Income redistribution not only betrays the founders' vision, it's a sin in the eyes of God. I'm guessing that when God gave Moses the Eighth Commandment, 'Thou shalt not steal,' I'm sure he didn't mean 'thou shalt not steal unless there was a majority vote in Congress'." ---Walter Williams

Clearing up some Blog Misinformation:
This from our good friend Lee Ellis

Warning: There is misinformation from 2004 still being forwarded by naive people about Target stores and the Salvation Army. These e-mails are NOT true.Here is how I answered one that came to me:
Snopes writes: "The claim that Target did not support veterans was false. Not only is the corporation one of the most generous business entities in the U.S., routinely topping Forbes magazine's list of "America's Most Philanthropic Companies," it donates to veteran-related causes, including exhibits like the one it was pilloried over its supposedly having given the cold shoulder.
In light of the above, it is ironic that in 2004 the Target Corporation has again aroused the ire of some shoppers over its rebuff of a charitable effort, but this time for actually having turned away a humanitarian organization rather than for the unfounded rumor of its having said no to a popular cause." (This lie continues in 2005)
Earlier in the year, 2004, "Target had announced a new corporate policy that banned Salvation Army collection kettles from its storefronts. The retailer had a no-solicitation policy at its stores but previously had made an exception for the Salvation Army. That exception has now gone by the wayside. In a September 2004 statement, Target spokesperson Carolyn Brookter said the chain "determined that if we continue to allow the Salvation Army to solicit, then it opens the door to other groups that wish to solicit our guests."
"It's becoming increasingly difficult to have an exception to our policy, so we decided we would have no exceptions," Brookter said. "This year we just said it's time to make our solicitation policy consistent."
Lee writes: You might want to blame this on such organizations as the ACLU and others like it who to threaten to sue corporations for millions of dollars if they discriminate against anyone ----and I mean ANYONE! If the Salvation Army is allowed, then Atheists and every fake religion will be there demanding their "rights," too.
Such false e-mails cost people their jobs. When people no longer spend money at a business because of LIES spread over the Internet, the hurt business has to cut back on employees!
Please urge all NEVER to send out such hurtful information without first taking the time to check one of the hundreds of hoax sites to be sure it is true. I like http://www.snopes.com/ because it has an easy search engine right at the top of its home page to find information.
I just entered the word, Target, and the answer was there immediately.

Lee Ellis

__________________________________________

Lee Ellis, Indio

We know what the French are doing. Are many politicians also raising the same flag?

It's not that I want the war over; I want it WON! Big difference! A pull-out will cause more Americans to be killed in this country than in Iraq. The Middle East mindset recognizes only strength or weakness. Any sign of weakness gives the terrorists the willingness to keep attacking, not just in Iraq but in America, too. . Only strength from the Americans will cause the terrorists to retreat. Only strength on our part will encourage the Iraqis to help us. They still remember Bush Sr. asking them to stand up against Saddam and then being killed with no help from America then. They do not want to see this repeated!

The terrorists are thrilled with a divided America and are encouraged to make matters worse when they hear politicians stating that we should surrender now by pulling out our troops, or telling our civilian population that if we stay there, the terrorism will get worse.

Oh, it will, the terrorist leaders ask? "Then we had better oblige the Americans by making it as worse as possible so they will run! They ran in Vietnam; they will run from Iraq, too, as the cowards they are! In America, it is media and politics that win a war, not their brave warriors. The American troops cannot win when they do not have the support of the voters, the politicians who seek votes for re-election, or the media which panders to the Anti-War people! "

The terrorists are real happy that our military is kept from winning. In their Middle East countries, their media and leaders help them win their battles. They don't need a strong brave military when they have that kind of support.

Come to think of it, was not that the way it was here in America in the 40s when we had the bravery of the media, the Hollywood celebrities and the politicians all combined with the bravery and strength of our military to win WWII?

____________________________________________________________________________________

Dr. Thomas Sowell

It is usually futile to try to talk facts and analysis to people who are enjoying a sense of moral superiority in their ignorance.

Since neither the creationists nor the evolutionists were there when the world began, why are our schools teaching either set of beliefs, when there are so many hard facts that the schools are failing to teach?

_______________________________________________________________________________________

If you have a thought that you feel the world just cannot go on without hearing, or if you want to make it known or maybe just get it off your chest, let us know.

The Editors will make the final decision as to its reader worthiness.
Title Goes Here
Put it together in an email and when you think it has reached masterpiece status, send it to us at

editor@thevalleybreeze.com

Title Goes Here