Here’s an actor, who I’ve loved both on TV and in movies, now on television again via commercials in Missouri and Maryland stating that by voting for the Republican candidate, in these states, you will block embryonic stem cell research. He points out that that embryonic stem cell research is the key to curing many diseases including his own. He believes that not allowing federal funds to fund these research efforts is criminal. Mr. Fox you are misinformed, mistaken and being taken for a ride.

First of all, leaving out any morality debate, what most Republicans oppose is the use of any federal money to fund these research programs. The lawmakers are not making it illegal to do embryonic stem cell research if it is funded privately. The problem is private research companies are not interested in doing embryonic research because it is not the answer or the cure to anything. They don’t want to waste their money on something that is not scientifically proven to help anybody. Where as, adult stem cells, which most private researches are working with, are being used to treat over 70 human diseases and injuries. They are improving the health of these patients. This is why everyone is using adult stem cells in their research. Scientists have already proven adult stem cells work much better in helping their patients improve, while embryonic stem cells could be dangerous.

A report in a journal called ‘Nature Medicine’ recently stated that researchers took rats with Parkinson’s disease, treated them with human embryonic stem cells. They did notice an improvement with some of the rats. However, 100% of the rats tests developed tumors! All of them! I suppose Michael J. Fox would like to be treated with this so that he could develop another illness?

Mr. Fox and many democrats are just plain wrong. They do not have the research to back up their claims that embryonic stem cell research will help. Again, I add, that privately funded research is allowed. So instead of wasting their money on silly little commercials that Rush Limbaugh and others argue over, which I felt was a waste of his listeners' time, they should put their money into private research. That is, if they can find anyone who is interested in working with these particular stem cells that are proven to do more harm than good.

Enemies of the United States know how to win wars. Their main objective is take control of the American media.
One clear example of this was CNN’s broadcast of an obvious terrorist propaganda video of a US soldier being shot by a sniper. How did this in any way benefit the war effort? It didn’t. In fact, CNN never should have aired that segment. Next they will want to air beheadings, which if you’ve seen any of them, are so revolting, you need to have your vomit bag ready. If CNN was going for ‘shock’ value, they got it.

The insurgency in Iraq is not very strong, reports have stated. But they are strong willed. The one ally they have, however, is the media outlets in our country. If we continue to film it or air it on our stations, they will continue to perform for the camera with hope that the American people see what’s going on, see the amounts of casualties rise, and begin to go against the war. This is occurring. At the beginning of the war, well over 75% of the American population was in favor of toppling Saddam Hussein. Now in late 2006 that number has fallen to less than 45% in favor of the war depending on which poll you look at. The unfortunate reality of this conflict is that it is more of a struggle than a war. Our soldiers struggle daily to help the Iraqi army and security forces contain an insurgency. The Iraqi government is struggling to hold the country together. President Bush is struggling to make the American people understand what’s going on. As of late, unfortunately, President Bush has failed miserably.
His comparison of the latest insurgent attacks during the holy month of Ramadan with the Tet offensive in Vietnam was inaccurate. By conjuring up a statement about a war which went down in the books as the most embarrassing war in US history to prove a point about your current war was not a great idea. The only similarity with Ramadan now and the Tet offensive then is that it’s a holiday, the Vietnamese New Year. Ramadan is the most defining month for Muslims. The differences are severe. The Tet offensive was launched when most of the South Vietnamese army was celebrating the New Year and American commanders were assuming that the normal New Year cease-fire was being observed by both sides, so the soldiers were taking in some much needed R&R. The one thing Tet did accomplish was it changed most American’s outlook on the war in Vietnam. Even though the US ultimately won the battle, the amount of casualties coupled with growing frustration by many in Congress that we were simply not winning and in American homes on how the war was being handled brought the ultimate end to the war itself. Is this what President Bush was referring to? I certainly hope not.

We understand that if we are to pull out, it will open the door to neighboring countries to move in. As we know, Iran and Syria both have interest in controlling Iraq’s oil, if not the entire country. This is why they are supplying the insurgency with weapons, more terrorists, and instructions on how to conduct their guerilla campaign against the Americans.

“The broader Middle East is the source of most of the world's security problems," said Zalmay Khalilzad, the U.S. ambassador to Iraq. "The struggle for the future of the region is between moderate and extremist political forces. The outcome in Iraq will profoundly shape this wider struggle and in turn, the security of the world."

The extremists, including Al Qaeda, Iran and Syria, fear Iraq's success and want to undermine U.S. resolve. They have everything to gain by prolonging the conflict, killing people, and "creating the perception that Iraq cannot be stabilized," Khalilzad said.

He called the war "the defining challenge of our era."
America's enemies believe that their will is stronger than ours and that they can win by outlasting us, Khalilzad said.

So as we struggle to determine whether or not our success in Iraq will help define democracy in the Middle East, we must realize that there is more at stake here than political opinions. Our soldiers see the faces of the Iraqi children every day. They see the excitement of the Iraqi men who are ready to join in defending their own country. Our soldiers know that the work they are doing is productive. They see it every day. Unfortunately, our media refuses to showcase those accomplishments, in favor of showing ‘snuff films’, so we are forced as a nation to second guess even our fellow Americans who are fighting to save a people from what could be their ultimate demise.

Tuesday President Bush signed legislation authorizing tough interrogation of terror suspects which smooth the way for trials before military commissions. As of late, the debate over this bill has been hotter than it’s been in Cuba recently. Of course many democrats oppose the bill for a multitude of reasons. One reason is that it violates civil liberties by not allowing the detainee access to a lawyer during interrogation. You could argue that most of these individuals are not Americans to begin with and are captured over seas. They are world terror suspects, many of whom have admitted to the terrorist acts they participated in. The democrats and the ACLU will have you believe that is hearsay and means nothing. How wrong they are.

These detainees do not get tortured once captured. No one has one single fact to prove this. I suppose listening to the Red Hot Chili Peppers is torture for some, so you got me there. The truth is, their life is pretty nice down there in Cuba. They get very good 3 meals a day, not slop. These meals are specific to their diet. The military actually researches what food to serve on certain days such as religious holidays. They get complete medical care including full physicals and treatment for health problems. Many Americans without health insurance do not even get this treatment! They get quiet time for prayer. In fact, it is so quiet that military guards are asked to be silent during prayer times, not by the detainees, but by their superior officers. The military guards have been struck with some of the most vile bodily fluids by the detainees as they walk down the hallway of the holding cells. Yet, our guards respect the detainees by allowing them certain luxuries most inmates would die for in our regular prisons.

Rabbi Arthur Waskow, director of the Shalom Center, which is affiliated with the Washington Region Religious Campaign Against Torture (WRRCAT) which released a statement saying that the legislation "deeply shames America" and that members of the group were "prepared to commit acts of civil disobedience" in order to deliver a statement to the president.

I doubt that the Rabbi has actually been to Gitmo and seen first hand what goes on there. I also doubt he listens, reads, or watches the news to see how radical Islamic extremists such as the ones we have detained wish to blow Israel as well as the US off the face of the Earth. Yet, he is willing to commit acts of civil disobedience, which obviously, is may not be a very peaceful solution, especially for a Rabbi, to prove his point. What is his point?

“If anybody had said to me five years ago that the president of the United States would have demanded the power, the authority, to take Americans or others, citizens of other countries, into detention without access to lawyers for indefinite periods of time ... and to suspend habeas corpus, I would have said 'that's ludicrous-in the United States of America such things could not be done,'" said Waskow.

Perhaps he should have been around during the civil war when Lincoln suspended habeas corpus. I believe we would be in for a much worse situation than our civil war if we do not enact tougher legislation to protect American citizens. This bill does not in any way endanger the civil rights of American citizens. Once again, the left and the ACLU got it wrong. They got it wrong on the wiretapping. They got it wrong on the data mining. And now, again, they are getting it wrong on this bill. By allowing military trial, these detainees will be allowed a fair deal. In my opinion, the Geneva convention does not apply here as these men wear no uniform, represent no official country, and do not believe in the Geneva convention themselves, so why should we treat them as such? If anything this bill sends a message to terrorists worldwide that we will not allow you to harm our citizens here or abroad. If you have the opportunity to protect your family at all costs you do it. This bill will protect all American families and make America much safer in the long run. If the left is too blind to see this, then I suppose they should put out the welcome mat for all terrorists to come and commit devastating and destructive acts of terror which sole purpose is to end innocent life. There is no political correctness when dealing with someone who wishes to kill you.

In recent weeks, as gas prices started to fall, a number of conspiracy theories came out via internet blogs, written media and even the news media. These theories attacked President Bush by stating that he was the one responsible for getting gas prices lower because of the upcoming election. Hogwash!

The individuals responsible for these have way too much time on their hands and no evidence to back up their ‘theories’. One definition of a theory is ‘an assumption based on limited information or knowledge; a conjecture.’ If these theories were based on facts they would be fact, they would not be assumptions.

Analysts have reported that the falling gas prices are due to market forces. You could tell as the price per barrel dropped in the market, the price of gas lowered. President Bush has no control over gas prices. If he did, he would have lowered them a long time ago when the gas prices started to rise and these cries of conspiracy rang out once before.
In a recent news release, “H. Sterling Burnett, a senior fellow with the National Center for Policy Analysis (NCPA), argued that the theory is "absurd."

"This is basic economics," said Burnett in a news release. "Markets, when not encumbered by foolish legislation to 'fix' a problem, work."

Burnett attributes the recent price drop to three main factors:

• Increased supply. Previously high prices are bringing more oil to market -- drilling rigs and production are up, refineries are being expanded here and built in other countries for the first time in years, and new technologies are being applied to exploit traditional and non-traditional sources;

• Decreased demand. In response to high prices, consumers are conserving. For example, sales of SUVs have fallen, and more fuel-efficient cars are flying off the shelf; and

• Decreased risk. Tensions in the Middle East have eased as more Iraqi oil is reaching the market, Iran seems unlikely to face sanctions, and Israel has left Lebanon, while the hurricane season has been milder than predicted. Therefore, inventories have remained high.”

One other factor to keep in mind is that summer travel season is over. Every year gas prices begin to rise around Memorial Day and lower after Labor Day. So, to the conspiracy theorists out there, perhaps you should study your economics, primarily the law of supply and demand. The fact many Democrats supported these rumors is worrisome as they do not seem to understand high school economics. These are the people who wish to take control of Congress. If they do not understand these basics, how can they run the government? They cannot.

What is more worrisome, but not surprising, is the main stream media’s reports on this subject. They should be reporting facts, but instead they report on these useless theories. Many major news stations have quoted new poll numbers regarding this issue. A recent USA Today/Gallup Poll asked voters: "Do you think the Bush administration has deliberately manipulated the price of gasoline so that it would decrease before this fall's elections?" Forty-two percent responded "Yes."

These alarming figures show once again the influence that the liberal media has over the American people. After all, if it’s on the news, it must be true, right?

“Thousands marched Saturday in the biggest show of public support yet for Venezuela’s main opposition presidential candidate, who pledged to undo what he called the ills of President Hugo Chavez’s government.
Manuel Rosales accused the government of mismanaging the country’s oil wealth and ignoring crime. He also played on fears that Chavez’s close friendship with Cuban leader Fidel Castro was leading Venezuela down the same path as the communist island. “

At least we can see that some of the people in Venezuela can follow international affairs, or at least get some of their ideas from them. The world is busy dealing with the evils of the world, namely Iran and North Korea, but must always remember that countries with potential dictators can show up at anytime. This is the case in Venezuela. As we know Chavez came to this country and gave anti-Bush and anti-US government speeches. Of course the right to free speech is one here in America we believe it. I’m sure if I went down to Venezuela and gave anti-Chavez speeches, I’d be thrown in jail or worse. Not so for Rosales, who is a governor of an oil rich Zulia state. He will be going up against Chavez in the December election. He has declared, “(We have) a government that is a puppet of a communist, totalitarian system. ... We have a government that is governing from Cuba.” Though that could be the truth, what is true is that Chavez is trying to move into a dictatorship role by changing the country’s election practices and even amending their constitution in his own favor. This, as we know, must not happen.

It is surprising that there were no riots or fights at this rally. According to the reports:
“Venezuelan authorities had promised to have as many as 2,500 officers on the streets to ensure security amid concerns about violence as Rosales’ supporters traversed sectors of the capital that are pro-Chavez.”

“Caracas’ metropolitan police estimated the crowd at about 9,000, but reporters on the scene estimated the turnout was more than 10,000. The crowd packed full a 2-mile avenue. “

The main worry about the December election is fraud and faulty electronic voting machines. Chavez’s opposition believes that there will be fraud and that the machines will be tampered with ultimately swinging the election toward Chavez. Even still, Rosales says it is the right of everyone is his country to vote. As Americans we can learn a lot from this. We must vote to protect our Democracy and freedom just as they vote to change theirs. Every time we have an election with errors or court rulings it sends a strong signal to other countries that our process does not work. This should not happen.

If anything, last Saturday’s rally shows us that in another country in the world that may fall to totalitarian rule, people believe and want freedom and a true democracy. They’re not afraid to show up in a peaceful rally to demonstrate that the people always have the power to create their own freedom.

With the latest sex scandal to rip through Washington, we continue to see an ever growing lack of American values, not only in society, but in our leadership positions. Mark Foley, a pronounced homosexual, sent illicit instant messages and emails to a 16 year old Congressional page. The investigation is continuing. Some have said these IM’s in question are actually those sent to a former page that was 18 years old. Some are saying that this has been going on for years and years and that Foley knew what he was doing. Let’s not blame alcohol or the fact he was abused as a child as reasons for this behavior. He resigned, as he should have.

The problem is not Foley himself. We know he is perverted and has his own mental problems, obviously. The authorities should investigate and prosecute if they feel they have a case. The true issue is that this occurred in Congress. This is not the first time congressmen have had relationships with pages. In 1973, Gerry Studds had a relationship with a 17 year old male page. The age of consent at that time was 17. I must point out, however, that Mr. Studds was 36 years old at the time. It took 10 years before he admitted to the relationship. He was known as openly gay. The irony is that he was elected 5 more times to Congress. Are we to think that in 1983 it was okay for this behavior? After all, it wasn’t ‘illegal’ per se. These men and women are leaders and our representatives. Let’s not forget about our married leaders who decide to have secret affairs with others that are ‘of age’. Just because those are not announced, that makes it okay? What does this say about us as Americans when this type of situation presents itself? Where are the values? Where is the moral leadership that we require from our representatives?

The call to blame Denny Hastert for knowing this years ago is very far fetched. In fact the man who is telling the media that he informed Hastert (or his office) 3 years ago, never in fact even set foot into their office, let alone called on the telephone to talk directly to the Speaker. According to Hastert he does not even know this guy. Was this a political ploy by Democrats to seize the opportunity to make Hastert look like he was covering something up? Of course. If the shoe was on the other foot and this Congressman was a Democrat, you can bet Republicans would do the same. However, we need to examine the facts not hearsay. Who had this information to begin with? Who sat on it for months or even years? Why was this not brought directly to the leadership as opposed to a possible staffer who is overworked to begin with and has no authority in the first place? Why did this information come out at the very time it was impossible to get Foley’s name off the ballot for the election? This is your investigation.

By turning this unfortunate situation into a political confrontation we see that our Congress is truly not doing the will of the American people, yet again. Since the Democrats had nothing to talk about for their election bids, this certainly is something to center themselves around. They are already circling the wagons around Denny Hastert, who, in my opinion has done a decent job as speaker, but certainly lacks some leadership ability. He is, however, taking full responsibility for his handling of the situation, be it timely or not, which is very commendable. Hastert is in charge. One cannot blame just Hastert, we must blame everyone in the leadership on both sides for their lack of leadership ability. They are to lead by example not by covering up their actions, which as we see occurs far too frequently. And that is not just ‘politics’ as many left wing writers have mentioned. Let’s always remember this does not occur just on one side, history has proven that it occurs on both sides and it’s very troublesome. It is clear that no matter what party you are with, Congress in a whole is lacking true traditional American values. Until we find individuals who can uphold these values and represent the REAL America, as opposed to their own interests, and lead us down the right path, we may be forced to repeat history time and time again which will not only hurt this generation, but all future generations.